VACATION 


>•  ••*  *• 


EXCURSION 


mm 


: 


m, 


•• 


AX- 


AC  AT  ION     EXCURSION, 


FROM       MASSACHUSETTS     BAY     TO 
PUGET     SOUND. 


Know  most  of  the  rooms  of  thy  native  country  before  thou  goest  over  the 
threshold  thereof.  —  Fuller, 

Traveling  is  no  fool's  errand  to  him  who  carries  his  eyes  and  itinerary 
along  with  him.  —  Alcott. 


^MANCHESTER,    N.    j-f. : 

PRESS    OF    JOHN    B.     CLARKE. 
1884. 


^  a 


Bancroft  Library 


EXPLANATORY. 


The  letters  composing  this  book  were  written  to 
the  Manchester,  N.  H.,  MIRROR  by  a  member  of  the 
Raymond  Excursion  Party  which  left  Boston,  May  i, 
1884,  for  a  trip  across  the  continent  and  to  the 
Pacific  Northwest.  They  are  brief  notes  and  impres- 
sions of  the  most  salient  points  of  interest  embraced 
in  visits  to  Colorado,  New  Mexico,  California, 
Oregon,  Washington  Territory,  Puget  Sound,  Van- 
couver's Island,  Idaho,  Montana  and  Utah,  addressed 
to  a  newspaper  constituency  with  no  thought  of  other 
publication,  and  are  necessarily  of  a  casual  and 
rambling  nature.  That  they  are  permitted  to  make 
another  addition  to  the  fast-increasing  multitude  of 
books  of  travel  is  due  to  the  urgent  desire  of  mem- 
bers of  the  party  and  numerous  readers  of  the  letters 
as  they  appeared  in  the  MIRROR  to  have  them  put 
before  the  public  in  this  form. 

o.  R. 

MANCHESTER,  N.  H.,  Dec.,  1884. 


PERSONNEL. 


In  Charge  : 
MR.   LUTHER  L.    HOLDEN,    of  Boston,    Mass. 

Assistant : 
MR.  C.  H.  BAGLEY,  of  St.  Johnsbury,  Vt. 


Billings,  L.  F.,  M.  D. 
Bloomer,  Mr.  A.  F. 
Brown,  George,  M.  D. 
Chapman,  Mr.  Faulkner 
Clark,  Mr.  Merritt 
Clark,  Mrs.  Merritt 
Clough,  Mr.  J.  H. 
Clough,  Mrs.  J.  H. 
Clough,  Miss  Bertha  H. 
Comstock,  Mr.  A.  W. 

*  Craddock,  Miss  Ida  C. 
Curtis,  Mrs.  Mary  S. 
Darling,  Mr.  L.  B. 
Darling,  Mrs.  L.  B. 

*  Decker,  Mrs.  Lizzie  S. 
Dewey,  Mr.  R.  W. 

t  Dodge,  Mrs.  J.  A. 
Eastham,  Miss  A.  E. 
Eastham,  Mrs.  W.  W. 
Enos,  Mr.  Thomas  B. 
Ensign,  Mr.  Charles  A. 
Everett,  Mrs.  T.  H. 


Barre, 

Chicago, 

Barre, 

Charlestown, 

Northampton, 

Northampton, 

Chicago, 

Chicago, 

Chicago, 

Essex, 

Philadelphia, 

Boston, 

Pawtucket, 

Pawtucket, 

Philadelphia, 

Canton, 

Plymouth, 

Boston, 

Boston, 

New  York, 

Maiden, 

Franklin, 


Mass. 

111. 
Mass. 
Mass. 
Mass. 
Mass. 

111. 

111. 

111. 

Conn. 
Penn. 
Mass. 
R.  I. 
R.  I. 
Penn. 

111. 

N.  H. 
Mass. 
Mass. 
N.  Y. 
Mass. 
Mass. 


8 


A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 


Fisher,  Mrs.  Eben  S. 
Fisher,  Mr.  Herbert 
Fisher,  Mrs.  Herbert 
Gould,  Mr.  Chas.  H. 
Gould,  Mrs.  Chas.  H. 
Griffiths,  Rev.  Edwin  C. 
Holden,  Mrs.  Luther  L. 
Hollister,  E.  O.,  M.  D. 
Hollister,  Mrs.  E.  O. 
Hyde,  Miss  R.  W. 
Johnson,  Miss  C.  C. 
Johnson,  Miss  Mary  E. 
Lane,  Mr.  George  F. 
Lawrence,  Miss  C.  W. 
Moore,  Miss  Annie 
Moore,  Mr.  John 
Moore,  Mrs.  John 
Neale,  Mr.  H. 
Neale,  Mrs.  H. 
Park,  Mrs.  W.  R.,  Jr., 
Rand,  Miss  Olive 
Ripley,  Mr.  Thomas  W. 
Silsbee,  Miss  E.  W. 
Spalding,  Miss  Ellen  R. 
Stearns,  Mr.  John  M. 
Stearns,  Mrs.  John  M. 
f  Taylor,  Mrs.  E.  S. 
Thorndike,  Mrs.  J.  H. 
Townsend,  Miss  Annie  P. 
Townsend,  Mrs.  E.  M. 

*  Turner,  Mr.  Sidney 

*  Turner,  Mrs.  Sidney 
Worrell,  Mr.  William 

*  *  Joined  the  party  at  San  Francisco. 

t  Joined  the  party  at  Los  Angeles,  Cal. 


Boston, 

Boston, 

Boston, 

Danvers, 

Danvers, 

Philadelphia, 

Boston, 


Mass. 
Mass. 
Mass. 
Mass. 
Mass. 
Penn. 
Mass. 


East  Bloomfield,  N.  Y. 
East  Bloomfield,  N.  Y. 
Brookline,  Mass. 

Danvers,  Mass. 

Danvers,  Mass. 

West  Medford,  Mass. 
Danvers,  Mass. 

Philadelphia,  Penn. 
Philadelphia,  Penn. 
Philadelphia,  Penn. 
London,  England. 

London,  England. 

Plymouth,  N.  H. 

Manchester,  N.  H. 

Melrose  Highl'ds,  Mass. 
Salem,  Mass. 

Salem,  Mass. 

Williamsburgh,  N.  Y. 
Williamsburgh,  N.  Y. 
Lake  Village,  N.  H. 
Boston,  Mass. 

Philadelphia,  Penn. 
Philadelphia,  Penn. 
Norwich,  Conn. 

Norwich,  Conn. 

Philadelphia,         Penn. 


CHAPTER  I. 

FIRST  NOTES. AT    CHICAGO. 

A  FAMILIAR  object  to  the  traveling  public  dur- 
2~\  ing  the  past  four  or  five  years  has  been  the  little 
shipping-tag  attached  to  numerous  trunks,  grip-sacks, 
bags  and  parcels,  bearing  the  legend :  - 

Raymond's  Vacation   Excursions, 

All 

Traveling  Expenses 
Included. 

To  the  initiated  that  little  label  is  very  significant. 
It  means  all  the  delights  of  travel, —  nice,  agreeable 
companions,  first-class  accommodations,  beautiful 
scenery,  interesting  places,  freedom  from  care,  anx- 
iety and  "fuss,"  and  as  complete  exemption  from 
annoyance  as  is  possible  in  the  present  stage  of  our 
civilization. 

It  is  now  five  or  six  years  since  Messrs.  Raymond 
&  Whitcomb  initiated  their  "personally  conducted" 
excursions  over  the  Boston,  Concord  &  Montreal 
and  Passumpsic  roads  to  Newport  and  Lake  Mem- 
phremagog.  Later  they  arranged  trips  to  Montreal, 
to  the  White  Mountains,  to  Saratoga,  Niagara  Falls, 
the  Thousand  Islands  and  other  points,  winter  trips 
to  Washington  and  Richmond,  and  three  years  ago 
began  a  series  of  transcontinental  excursions  to  Cali- 
fornia, acquiring  everywhere  a  reputation  for  making 


10  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

good  all  their  promises  for  first-class  accommodations, 
and  for  that  careful  attention  to  small  details  the 
performance  or  the  neglect  of  which  has  so  much  to 
do  with  the  comfort  and  happiness  of  the  traveler. 

It  was  the  writer's  good  fortune  to  be  a  member  of 
the  first  of  these  excursions  to  the  Capital,  and  the 
happy  memories  of  that  tour  have  always  awakened  a 
desire,  with  each  new  announcement  of  a  "Raymond 
Excursion,"  to  again  join  the  company  of  sight-seers. 

This  is  the  fourth  season  that  Raymond  &  Whit- 
comb  have  conducted  parties  to  California,  taking  out 
two  or  three  each  spring.  Mr.  Luther  L.  Holden, 
formerly  of  the  Boston  Journal,  has  been  associated 
with  them  in  the  conduct  of  these  excursions.  This 
year  they  arranged  for  three  to  cover  the  usual  Cali- 
fornia route,  and  a  fourth  embracing  all  the  points  of 
interest  covered  by  the  others  and  extending  to  Ore- 
gon, Washington  Territory,  Puget  Sound,  British 
Columbia,  Montana,  Idaho,  etc.,  occupying  a  period 
of  seventy-three  days  and  including  more  than  ten 
thousand  miles  of  travel. 

This  party,  conducted  by  Mr.  Luther  L.  Holden, 
assisted  by  Mr.  C.  H.  Bagley  of  St.  Johnsbury,  Vt., 
left  Boston,  May  i,  from  the  Fitchburg  station,  via  the 
Hoosac  Tunnel  line,  the  New  York,  West  Shore  & 
Buffalo  road,  and  the  Chicago  &  Grand  Trunk  to 
Chicago. 

Our  party  consists  of  fifty-three  members,  besides 
the  conductors,  booked  for  the  full  trip,  and  three  or 


INTRODUCTORY.  1 1 

four  others  who  will  stop  in  Kansas  or  Colorado.  We 
have  representatives  of  all  the  New  England  states,  of 
New  York,  Pennsylvania  and  Illinois,  and  two  from 
London,  England.  There  are  twenty-two  gentlemen 
and  thirty-one  ladies  in  the  party.  There  are  three 
M.  D.  's,  one  reverend,  and  one  or  more  learned  in  the 
law.  Bankers,  merchants,  manufacturers  and  print- 
ers have  their  representatives,  and  the  coupon-cutter 
is  probably  not  omitted.  Most  of  the  party  have 
reached  or  passed  the  prime  of  life,  though  fair  young 
womanhood  is  not  without  some  of  its  brightest  rep- 
resentatives. The  bride  of  the  party  was  one  of  Man- 
chester's comeliest  maidens  three  weeks  ago.  We  are 
fast  becoming  acquainted  with  one  another,  and  shall 
be  a  very  happy  family  for  the  next  ten  weeks.  Mrs. 
Holden,  who  has  already  made  three  of  these  trans- 
continental trips,  enters  upon  her  fourth  with  all  the 
enthusiasm  of  a  novice.  A  nature  like  hers  will  never 
grow  old. 

Our  first  stop  was  at  Greenfield,  Mass.,  where  we 
had  supper  at  the  Mansion  House,  and  a  rest  of  a 
couple  of  hours.  It  was  too  late  to  get  any  idea  of 
the  scenery,  but  the  hotel  commends  itself.  Thursday- 
night  some  of  the  tourists  had  their  first  experience 
of  a  sleeping-car  berth.  All  who  had  not  traveled 
the  route  before  determined  to  keep  awake  till  they 
went  "  through  the  tunnel,"  but  the  drowsy  god  was 
too  potent  for  some  of  them.  Others,  who  could  not 
so  well  accommodate  themselves  to  their  new  envi- 


12  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

ronment,  amused  themselves  in  counting  and  classi- 
fying the  various  snores  that  proceeded  from  the  sev- 
eral berths. 

An  excellent  breakfast  at  the  station  dining-rooms 
in  Syracuse  put  all  in  good  trim  for  the  second  day's 
ride.  The  scenery  of  the  Mohawk  valley  is  tame  to 
a  New  Englander.  The  low  hills  seen  on  either  hand 
a  part  of  the  distance  are  formed  like  big  snow-drifts, 
and  are  merely  drifted  sand-heaps  covered  with  turf. 
A  strong  gale  was  blowing  all  day,  which  retarded  the 
very  heavy  train,  so  that  our  arrival  at  Clifton  and 
dinner  was  somewhat  delayed,  and  to  save  time  the 
latter  was  served  in  a  dining-car.  It  was  put  down  in 
the  book  that  we  were  to  have  supper  at  London, 
P.  O.  One  young  lady,  perhaps  not  familiar  with  the 
names  of  the  different  provinces  in  the  Dominion  of 
Canada,  declared  we  were  to  eat  our  supper  at  the 
post-office. 

We  arrived  in  Chicago  on  Saturday  about  10  A.  M., 
and  were  conveyed  by  omnibus  to  the  Sherman 
House.  Each  tourist  was  provided  with  a  ticket, 
giving  number  of  his  room,  before  leaving  the  station, 
and  thus  on  arrival  had  nothing  to  do  but  show  his 
ticket  to  be  immediately  located.  The  day  was  bright 
and  beautiful  and  was  improved  by  each  one  in  ac- 
cordance with  his  or  her  inclination.  It  is  not  my 
purpose  to  attempt  any  description  of  this  big  city, 
whose  stupendous  growth  is  the  wonder  of  the  cen- 
tury. The  figures,  as  one  looks  over  the  statistics,  are 


CHICAGO.  13 

appalling.  And  yet,  no  matter  how  much  one  reads 
or  hears  about  it,  we  are  not  quite  prepared  for  the 
reality.  A  flat  country  is  not  interesting  in  a  scenic 
view,  and  I  suppose  it  has  disadvantages  in  the  way  of 
sewerage  and  drainage ;  but  it  does  admit  of  beautiful 
streets,  straight  and  level  as  a  house  floor,  and  when 
we  think  of  the  miles  and  miles  of  these  streets,  lined 
with  tall  buildings  of  brick  and  stone  and  iron,  cov- 
ering a  territory  of  fifty  square  miles,  and  of  the  rest- 
less energy  which  animates  the  three-quarters  of  a 
million  people  who  occupy  these  structures  and  pushes 
on  the  vast  traffic  of  the  food  storehouse  of  the  con- 
tinent, and  of  the  tens  of  thousands  of  others  who 
come  here  daily  for  business  or  pleasure,  we  are  over- 
whelmed, as  when  we  try  to  count  the  stars  or  meas- 
ure the  illimitable. 

Saturday  is  "shopping-day"  in  Chicago, and  State 
street,  where  the  large  retail  stores  are  chiefly  located, 
was  gay  with  elegantly  dressed  ladies  coming  and  go- 
ing. One  who  enjoys  "seeing  the  styles"  could  not 
fail  to  find  pleasure  here.  I  have  always  been  inter- 
ested in  the  way  in  which  Chicago  secured  her  water 
supply  by  tunneling  two  miles  under  the  bed  of  Lake 
Michigan,  and  as  we  drove  near  the  pumping-station 
and  stand-pipe,  two  very  ornamental  buildings  of 
granite  at  the  foot  of  Chicago  avenue,  I  was  glad  to 
enter  and  see  the  huge  machinery  which  pumps  this 
exhaustless  supply  of  pure  water  from  the  bottom  of 
the  lake.  The  immense  engines  have  a  combined  power 


14  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

of  three  thousand  horses,  pumping  the  water  into  the 
tower  to  a  height  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  feet, 
whence  it  is  distributed  throughout  the  city.  There  are 
two  of  these  water  tunnels  now,  with  a  combined  ca- 
pacity of  one  hundred  and  fifty  million  gallons  daily, 
but  the  growth  of  population  is  so  rapid  that  another 
is  contemplated. 

A  drive  through  the  boulevards,  Michigan  avenue, 
with  its  lake  front  and  beautiful  residences,  the  street 
broad  and  smooth,  Prairie  avenue,  Drexel  boulevard, 
Lincoln  park,  South  park,  and  the  others,  is  some- 
thing not  to  be  omitted.  We  met  many  handsome 
equipages  and  several  ladies  on  horseback  on  the 
boulevards,  and  were  informed  by  our  driver  that  on 
almost  any  other  day  in  the  week  we  should  meet 
hundreds  of  them,  but  Saturday  is  devoted  to 
shopping. 

One  of  the  finest  public  buildings  is  the  new  city 
and  county  court-house,  which  occupies  the  square 
bounded  by  Clark,  Randolph,  La  Salle  and  Washing- 
ton streets  and  is  directly  opposite  the  Sherman  House 
where  we  are  staying.  It  is  probably  not  surpassed  in 
the  beauty  of  its  architecture  by  any  similar  building 
in  the  United  States.  This  corner,  Clark  and  Ran- 
dolph streets,  is  the  busiest  in  the  city,  and  lots  here 
are  rated  higher  than  anywhere  else.  The  site  of  the 
Sherman  House,  in  a  sworn  valuation,  was  placed  at 
four  thousand  dollars  a  front  foot,  the  lot  being  186 
feet  square,  the  value  of  the  buildings  not  being  in- 


CHICAGO.  15 

eluded.  This  house,  which  is  every  way  a  satisfactory 
one,  accommodates  from  five  hundred  to  a  thousand 
guests,  according  to  circumstances.  Mr.  Pearce,  the 
landlord,  gave  us  some  very  interesting  facts  concern- 
ing the  great  fire  and  its  results.  Himself  the  loser 
of  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  by  it,  he  said  his 
chief  regret  was  that  he  should  never  live  to  see  the 
beautiful  city,  whose  growth  he  had  watched  for 
twenty-five  years,  restored,  as  he  could  not  hope  that 
his  life  would  be  prolonged  for  another  twenty-five 
years.  It  is  now  thirteen  years,  and  the  city  is  larger 
than  ever.  The  twenty-one  hundred  acres  of  ashes 
are  covered  with  tall  structures  of  brick  and  stone,  if 
not  more  beautiful  than  those  destroyed,  at  least,  as  a 
rule,  more  substantial.  There  is  a  pathetic  side  to  the 
story  of  the  great  fire  not  generally  known.  The 
chief  sufferers  \vere  the  once  rich  men  who  lost  their 
all  and  were  never  able  to  recover  from  the  blow. 
These  victims  are  filling  the  graveyards  and  asylums 
year  by  year. 

An  immense  new  building,  nine  stories  high,  is  that 
of  the  Pullman  Car  Company,  just  being  completed. 
A  restaurant  is  in  the  top  story  for  the  convenience 
of  the  employes. 

But  I  must  desist ;  for,  as  I  said,  I  do  not  intend  to 
attempt  any  description  of  this  great  and  wonderful 
city,  and  only  allude  to  a  few  of  the  objects  that 
interested  me. 


1 6  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

This,  Sunday,  morning  is  rainy  and  not  favorable 
to  sight-seeing.  It  may  be  more  conducive  to  church- 
going.  To-morrow  morning  we  start  via  the  Chicago, 
Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railway  for  Kansas  City, 
thence  via  the  Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  anji 
Denver  &  Rio  Grande  railways.  Our  first  stopping- 
place  will  be  Manitou,  Col. 


CHAPTER   II. 

FROM    CHICAGO    TO    COLORADO. PUEBLO. 

I  AM  very  grateful  to  Mr.  Pullman.  I  saw  his 
house  in  Chicago.  It  is  elegant  and  beautiful.  I 
am  glad  he  can  afford  to  live  in  it.  We  have  been 
living  in  one  of  his  palace  cars  several  days  —  it 
seems  weeks  —  and  we  like  it.  Talk  about  fatigue  of 
travel  is  meaningless  under  such  conditions  as  environ 
us.  Why,  it  is  rest,  — 

"  Rest  from  the  sorrows  that  greet  us, 
Rest  from  all  petty  vexations  that  meet  us," 

and  several  other  things. 

It  is  a  marvel  how  so  excellent  and  elaborate  a  bill 
of  fare  can  be  served  as  we  find  on  the  dining-cars  of 
the  Chicago  &  Grand  Trunk  and  the  Chicago,  Rock 
Island  &  Pacific  railways.  Thirty  to  forty  articles 
are  embraced  in  the  menu,  and  everything  cooked 
and  served  in  an  unexceptionable  manner.  Think 
of  finding  a  bouquet  of  hot-house  roses  at  your  plate 
as  you  sit  down  to  dainty  little  tables  with  the  snow- 
iest of  linen,  of  eating  your  strawberries  and  cream 
in  one  town,  your  beefsteak  and  omelet  in  the  next, 
and  perhaps  taking  your  final  sip  of  coffee  in  a  fourth  ! 
What  a  genius  it  must  be  who  can  evolve  all  these 
delicious  viands  from  a  bit  of  a  kitchen  at  one  end 


1 8  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

of  ^the  car,  where  there  is  not  room  enough  "  to 
swing  a  cat  !  ' ' 

I  am  afraid  I  shall  have  to  surrender  one  of  my 
pet  prejudices.  Born  almost  within  the  shadow  of 
the  mountains,  with  an  outlook  from  the  paternal 
acres  commanding  a  view  circumscribed  only  by  the 
fringe  of  blue  hills  in  the  far  distant  horizon,  and 
covering  a  vast  expanse  of  hill  and  valley,  forest, 
lake  and  stream,  I  had  ever  felt  with  Mrs.  Brown- 
ing, - 

"Hills  draw  like  heaven, 

And  stronger  sometimes  ;  stretching  out  their  hands 
To  lead  you  from  the  vile  flats  up  to  them,  " 

and  that  a  home  on  the  prairie  would  be  of  all  things 
most  dreary.  But  the  ride  through  Illinois  and  Kan- 
sas (the  other  states  were  traversed  in  the  night), 
particularly  Kansas,  with  their  miles  on  miles  of 
gently  undulating  fields,  the  rich  black  soil,  —  blacker 
than  any  I  have  seen  since  as  a  child  I  cultivated 
"  bachelor's  buttons  "  and  "  lady's  delights  "  (these 
are  not  synonymous)  in  the  home  garden,  — in  con- 
trast with  the  rich  green  of  the  upspringing  grass  and 
grain,  the  cheerful  looking  farm-houses  at  not  infre- 
quent intervals,  the  pleasant  villages,  the  flower-bor- 
dered streams,  have  shaken  my  prejudice  somewhat, 
and  forced  me  to  admit  that  possibly  one  might  live 
happily  —  for  a  time  —  out  of  sight  of  the  blue  hills 
and  gray  rocks  of  o.ld  New  England.  I  draw  the 
line  at  rolling  prairie,  however. 


CROSSING    THE    PRAIRIES.  19 

At  Joliet,  111.,  we  came  in  view  of  the  extensive 
limestone  quarries,  whence  much  of  the  building 
stone  used  in  Chicago  is  taken.  The  absence  of  any 
dip  in  the  strata  is  in  noticeable  contrast  to  our  own 
geologic  formations.  These  limestone  layers  are 
placed  upon  each  other  as  horizontally  as  in  a  wall 
of  masonry. 

The  old  Michigan  and  Illinois  canal  was  in  sight 
most  of  the  way  from  Chicago  to  La  Salle,  a  distance 
of  one  hundred  miles,  but  no  mules  or  horses  were  in 
the  tow-path,  the  railroads  now  doing  all  the  trans- 
portation. As  we  approach  La  Salle  the  face  of  the 
country  changes,  and  for  several  miles  presents  a 
broken  surface  with  numerous  hills,  some  of  them  of 
quite  respectable  proportions.  All  along  the  route 
till  we  reached  the  Colorado  plains,  the  streams  were 
full  to  overflowing,  the  ground  was  saturated  with 
moisture,  and,  as  a  consequence,  little  or  nothing  had 
been  done  upon  the  farms.  Very  few  fields  had  been 
plowed,  and  the  season  seems  much  later  than  in  New 
England.  At  rare  intervals  we  saw  a  man,  with  two 
or  three  horses  abreast  attached  to  a  plow,  riding  his 
vehicle  with  as  much  ease  as  a  lady's  coachman. 
Poor  Richard  is  obsolete  here,  and  the  saying, 

"  He  who  by  the  plow  would  thrive 
Himself  must  either  hold  or  drive,  " 

no  longer  has  meaning.  In  Kansas  the  grain  and 
grass  were  more  advanced,  and  apple  trees  were  in 
full  bloom.  Herds  of  cattle  were  seen  and  numerous 


20  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

black  pigs  along  the  route.  Whether  these  western 
people  have  a  prejudice  against  any  swine  but  Berk- 
shires  and  Poland  Chinas,  or  whether  nothing  but 
color  will  thrive  in  the  black  soil,  we  don't  know, 
but  not  a  single  white  pig  has  appeared  in  sight  in 
the  whole  journey. 

We  arrived  in  Kansas  City  Tuesday  morning  and 
partook  of  an  excellent  breakfast  at  the  station  din- 
ing-rooms. I  commend  this  restaurant  especially  to 
lovers  of  good  coffee.  Kansas  City  is  built  upon  a 
high,  precipitous  bluff,  the  perpendicular  sides,  like 
a  wall  of  masonry,  showing  the  stratification  of  the 
rocks.  The  business  part  of  the  town  and  the  rail- 
roads are  below  the  bluff.  Kansas  City  is  the  great- 
est railroad  center  in  the  West  and  its  population  is 
nearly  one  hundred  thousand.  It  is  the  market  from 
which  nearly  all  the  mining  regions  of  Colorado, 
New  Mexico  and  Arizona  procure  their  food  supplies. 

Re-entering  the  cars  we  pursue  our  way  through 
the  Garden  State.  Kansas  is  a  goodly  land,  and  may 
well  boast.  As  the  train  stopped  at  Lawrence  I 
stepped  off  for  a  moment,  and  felt  that  I  was  on  sa- 
cred soil,  as  I  recalled  that  here  the  first  battle  against 
the  encroachments  of  slavery  was  fought,  and  that 
here  was  really  the  beginning  of  the  bloody  struggle 
which  emancipated  a  race  and  made  this  vast  country 
free  in  fact  as  well  as  in  name.  "  Bleeding  Kansas  " 
is  now  smiling  Kansas,  and  her  wonderful  growth  is 
a  marvel  even  in  this  wonder-working  Wrest.  Every 


SMILING    KANSAS.  21 

foot  of  government  land  has  been  taken  up,  and  the 
population  now  numbers  a  million  souls.  The  Atch- 
ison,  Topeka  &  Sante  Fe  Railroad,  with  its  numerous 
branches,  has  been  largely  instrumental  in  this  rapid 
development.  Topeka,  where  we  dined,  the  capital 
and  most  populous  city  in  the  state,  is  the  headquar- 
ters of  this  road,  the  general  offices  and  shops  being 
located  here,  cars,  engines  and  complete  trains  being 
manufactured.  It  was  a  matter  of  regret  that  we 
could  not  stop  to  view  the  elegant  public  buildings 
and  beautiful  residences. 

The  coal  mines  of  Kansas,  which  are  numerous  in 
Osage  county,  were  so  unlike  our  conception  of  any 
kind  of  a  mine  that  I  could  at  first  scarcely  believe 
that  thd  wooden  shafts  occasionally  seen  were  the 
entrances  to  real  mines.  All  above  was  green  turf ;  no 
debris,  no  sand,  nor  rocks,  nor  rubbish.  Newton,  our 
stopping-place  for  supper,  is  near  the  location  of  the 
Russian  Mennonites,  who  came  here  about  ten  years 
ago  to  escape  the  oppression  of  the  Russian  govern- 
ment. There  were  about  fifteen  hundred  of  them 
settled  in  Kansas,  and  their  success  in  farming  is  said 
to  be  something  wonderful,  particularly  in  fruit-rais- 
ing. They  also  give  a  good  deal  of  attention  to 
silkworm  culture. 

Soon  after  leaving  Newton  we  sought  our  berths, 
and  when  at  dawn  I  again  looked  out  upon  the  world, 
the  Arkansas  river,  up  whose  valley  we  had  traveled 
since  leaving  Newton,  was  flowing  close  beside  the 


22  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

track,  and  a  broad  plain  covered  with  brown  grass, 
stretching  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  was  spread 
out  before  me.  Frequent  herds  of  cattle  were  seen, 
and  an  occasional  dug-out  or  shanty  which  furnished 
shelter  for  the  ranchman.  At  one  watering-station 
near  the  Colorado  line  there  is  a  little  village  of  these 
dug-outs  sheltering  nearly  a  hundred  people,  with  no 
frame  buildings  except  those  belonging  to  the  rail- 
road. They  are  simply  cellars  with  a  roof  over 
them  slightly  inclined,  and  a  window  in  the  upper 
half  of  the  door  by  which  they  are  entered. 

About  six  o'clock  Wednesday  morning  we  reached 
Coolidge,  a  railway  town,  and  two  miles  further  on 
crossed  the  state  line  into  Colorado.  We  had  now 
attained  an  altitude  of  3,400  feet  above  the  sea  level, 
having  ascended  2,500  feet  since  leaving  Topeka,  yet 
so  gradually  that  the  ascent  was  scarcely  perceptible. 
For  the  next  five  hours  there  was  little  variation  in 
the  scene.  The  broad  plain  still  stretched  before  us, 
the  brown  buffalo  grass  gradually  giving  way  to  sage- 
bush  and  cactus,  the  Arkansas  with  its  fringe  of 
cottonwoods  still  slowly  meandered  along,  herds  of 
cattle  still  browsed,  though  less  numerous  as  the  sage- 
bush  and  cactus  became  the  only  growth,  but  what 
the  poor  creatures  found  to  sustain  life  we  could  not 
guess.  Indeed,  many  had  starved  during  the  winter, 
as  the  corpses  along  the  way  bore  witness.  "  Putre- 
fy? "  Oh,  no  ;  nothing  putrefies  in  this  Colorado  air. 
Notwithstanding  the  sameness  of  the  prospect  it  was 


PUEBLO.  23 

not  tiresome  as  such  monotony  usually  is,  for  the 
brightest,  bluest  sky,  the  most  exhilarating  atmos- 
phere, lent  a  charm  to  everything. 

Our  only  stop  was  at  La  Junta  (pronounce  it  La 
Hoonta),  for  breakfast.  I  doubt  if  any  of  my  read- 
ers had  a  breakfast  that  morning  equaling  in  variety 
or  excelling  in  quality  and  cooking  that  served  to  us 
on  these  arid  plains,  where  not  a  green  thing  grows, 
hundreds  of  miles  from  any  market.  Crisp  water- 
cresses,  beefsteak,  omelets,  chicken,  fish,  ham,  rolls, 
coffee  and  numerous  other  articles  were  spread  before 
us,  and  all  of  the  nicest  quality.  It  was  such  a  gen- 
uine surprise  to  everybody  that  our  French  host,  who 
was  most  assiduous  in  his  attentions,  was  almost  over- 
whelmed with  compliments. 

Soon  after  leaving  La  Junta  the  beautiful  Spanish 
Peaks  and  the  Green  Horn  Mountains  began  to  appear 
in  sight,  and  a  little  later  the  snowy  summit  of  Pike's 
Peak.  We  reached  South  Pueblo  about  noon,  where 
unexpected  attentions  awaited  us,  the  mayor  and  a 
delegation  of  the  South  Pueblo  Board  of  Trade  meet- 
ing the  party  at  the  station  and  tendering  the  cour- 
tesy of  a  carriage  ride  through  the  city.  There  are 
three  Pueblos, —  Pueblo,  Central  Pueblo  and  South 
Pueblo,  —  each  with  its  own  mayor  and  city  govern- 
ment, and,  two  miles  from  South  Pueblo,  the  little 
village  of  Bessemer  where  the  steel  and  nail  works 
are.  It  is  claimed  that  there  are  twenty  thousand 
inhabitants  in  these  villages,  which  are  practically  one 


24  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

town,  and  the  dwellings  are  of  all  degrees,  from  the 
tent  and  dug-out  to  the  mansion  costing  $125,000. 
And  not  a  green  thing  is  to  be  seen  anywhere  except- 
ing in  a  few  yards  which  are  irrigated  with  water  from 
the  city  water  supply,  which  is  drawn  from  the  Arkan- 
sas river.  Everywhere  is  the  dull  Quaker  drab  soil, 
and  the  prevailing  color  of  the  wooden  houses  is  about 
the  same  shade.  The  only  growths  are  cactus  and 
sage-bush,  and  the  cottonwood  trees,  not  yet  in  leaf, 
which  skirt  the  river  and  have  been  set  out  in  many 
of  the  streets.  Bessemer  and  the  principal  business 
portion  of  Pueblo  are  in  a  sort  of  basin  ;  the  streets 
where  most  of  the  residences  are  situated  run  up  the 
hill-sides  and  spread  out  upon  the  broad  table- land 
above.  These  command  a  fine  view  of  the  distant 
mountains,  the  Spanish  Peaks,  Green  Horn  range  and 
Pike's  Peak,  and  a  wide  expanse  of  plain.  The  view 
from  "Tenderfoot  Hill,"  where,  it  is  said,  new- 
comers are  required  to  walk  barefoot  till  they  can 
trample  the  cactus  without  wincing,  is  particularly 
good.  This  hill  in  some  respects  resembles  "  Libby 
Hill,"  overlooking  the  James  river  at  Richmond. 
Five  bridges  span  the  Arkansas  between  the  Pueblos. 
Here,  as  elsewhere  in  the  West,  the  school  buildings 
are  especially  fine,  being  built  of  brick  or  stone,  and 
are  among  the  best  structures  in  the  town.  The 
churches  are  numerous  and  some  of  them  quite  hand- 
some. Three  artesian  wells  supply  drinking-water 
and  are  said  to  possess  great  medicinal  qualities.  A 


BESSEMER    STEEL-WORKS.  25 

horse-railroad  extends  two  miles  through  the  town. 
Hon.  Alvah  Adams,  president  of  the  board  of  trade, 
one  of  the  gentlemen  who  accompanied  us,  does  a 
business  of  half  a  million  a  year  in  hardware,  and  is 
a  good  specimen  of  the  push  and  enterprise  which  are 
building  up  these  cities  of  the  plain  as  if  by  magic. 
Nothing  is  left  undone  which  effort  and  energy  can 
accomplish  to  set  forth  the  advantages  offered  for  the 
investment  of  capital,  and  to  invite  immigration. 
Pueblo  is  the  natural  outlet  of  a  large  mining  region, 
and  hopes  to  rival  Denver  in  the  near  future. 

Our  visit  to  the  steel  and  nail  works  and  smelting 
furnaces  was  exceedingly  interesting,  and  to  most  a 
novelty.  We  were  shown  the  whole  process,  from  the 
melting  and  "  puddling"  of  the  crude  ore  in  the  big 
furnace  till  it  came  out  pig  iron  ;  then  the  heating  of 
the  pigs  in  other  fiery  furnaces  till  they  came  out 
ingots  of  steel,  the  passage  of  these  glowing  ingots 
through  successive  rollers  till  they  were  reduced  to 
long  bars,  and  then  by  still  another  machine  cut  and 
formed  into  perfect  steel  rails  for  the  track  of  the 
locomotive.  These  Bessemer  steel-works,  which  are 
owned  by  the  Colorado  Coal  and  Iron  Co.,  are  said 
to  be  the  best  in  existence,  the  machinery  being  all 
of  the  very  latest  improved  patterns.  They  have  a 
capacity  of  three  hundred  tons  a  day.  They  have 
been  in  operation  about  four  years.  At  the  nail-works 
close  by,  eighteen  different  sizes  of  nails  are  manufac- 
tured. The  smelting-furnace  for  the  reduction  of 

3 


26  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

gold  and  silver  ores  is  the  largest  in  the  state,  and 
another  is  in  process  of  construction. 

When  the  excursionists  had  returned  to  the  station, 
Mr.  Stearns  of  Williamsburgh,  N.  Y.,  made  a  little 
speech  expressing  the  gratitude  of  the  party  for  the 
attentions  bestowed,  which  was  supplemented  by 
cheers  for  the  board  of  trade,  and  we  departed  for 
Manitou  bearing  pleasant  memories  of  this  hospitable 
Pueblo. 


CHAPTER    III. 

MANITOU    AND    ITS    ENVIRONS. 

PUEBLO  is  the  center  of  the  Denver  &  Rio 
Grande  system  of  narrow-gauge  railroads  which 
radiate  from  that  point  in  all  directions  among  the 
mountains.  Colorado  Springs  is  forty-four  miles  from 
Pueblo,  on  the  direct  line  to  Denver,  and  Manitou  is 
six  miles  from  Colorado  Springs  by  a  branch  road 
from  there.  It  is  in  a  narrow  valley  at  the  junction 
of  Ruxton  creek  and  the  Fountaine  qui  JSouille,  close 
up  to  the  foot-hills  of  Pike's  Peak,  and  near  the 
entrance  to  Ute  Pass.  Pike's  Peak,  14,336  feet  high,  is 
but  ten  miles  distant.  The  village  has  about  five 
hundred  inhabitants.  Besides  the  attractions  of  the 
scenery,  there  are  mineral  springs  here  of  great  medi- 
cinal value  and  of  delicious  flavor,  the  Ute  iron  spring 
and  the  Navajo  soda  spring  being  especially  noted. 
There  is  also  a  sulphur  spring.  Williams'  Canon,  the 
Cave"  of  the  Winds,  the  Ute  Pass  and  Rainbow  Falls, 
the  Pike's  Peak  Trail  and  Ingleman's  Pass,  and,  last 
and  greatest,  the  Garden  of  the  Gods,  are  all  near 
by.  I  suppose  that  most  readers  of  Mrs.  Blake's  "  On 
the  Wing,"  have  thought  her  glowing  description  of 
the  Garden  of  the  Gods  colored  by  that  poetic  imagi- 
nation and  subtile  grace  which  lend  a  charm  to  all 


28  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

she  writes,  and  that  there  were  revealed  to  her  vision 
beauties  which  more  prosaic  eyes  would  never  dis- 
cover. But  no  description  can  over-rate  the  scene. 
No  wonder  that  the  red  man  found  this  the  fitting 
abode  of  Manitou,  the  Great  Spirit.  The  first  thing 
you  observe  on  entering  Manitou  is  the  color,  — 
brilliant  terra-cotta  or  deeper  red  everywhere.  The 
roads,  the  rocks,  the  mountain  sides,  all  have  the  same 
glowing  hue.  In  the  great  upheaval  which  raised 
this  rocky  wall  which  divides  the  continent,  the  red 
sandstone  here  came  to  the  front. 

It  was  morning  when  we  rode  to  the  Garden  of  the 
Gods.  The  sky  was  without  a  cloud.  We  are  over 
six  thousand  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  high  as 
the  summit  of  Mt.  Washington,  and  the  air,  so  clear 
that  objects  ten  miles  away  seem  scarcely  more  than 
a  mile  distant,  was  blowing  soft  and  cool.  As  we 
enter  the  Garden  we  are  surrounded  by  forms  in  the 
likeness  or  caricature  of  man  and  beast,  bird  and 
reptile,  forms  beautiful,  fantastic,  monstrous  or  gro- 
tesque, all  of  the  ever  prevailing  red  color,  sculptured 
by  the  action  of  the  weather  upon  the  sandstone  rocks. 
"  Mushroom  Park  "  contains  scores  of  forms  like  huge 
mushrooms,  the  stem  of  dark  red  and  the  cap  of  a 
light  gray  or  mushroom  color.  A  kneeling  woman,  a 
fat  Dutchman,  a  bull-frog,  an  immense  turtle,  "the 
lady  of  the  garden"  with  her  white  apron  and 
kerchief,  an  elephant,  a  lion  couchant,  these  and  a 
hundred  other  shapes  greet  the  eye  as  we  proceed.  If 


THE  GARDEN  OF  THE  GODS.  29 

it  were  not  irreverent  to  think  of  the  Divine  Artist  as 
experimenting,  we  could  imagine  that  here  He  had  first 
tried  his  hand  at  modeling  the  form  of  everything  into 
which  He  was  to  breathe  the  breath  of  life.  These 
forms  are  all  wonderful,  but  we  must  pass  through  the 
gateway  —  a  rectangular  opening  some  fifty  feet  wide 
in  a  wall  of  solid  red  sandstone  three  hundred  and 
thirty  feet  high,  the  portals  guarded  by  lofty  senti- 
nels,—  then  turning,  look  back  through  the  opening 
upon  a  picture  whose  sublime  beauty  and  grandeur 
no  pen  can  fitly  describe.  First,  these  massive  Walls  of 
red  rock,  then  the  monumental  sentinel  guarding  the 
entrance,  beyond  the  Garden  the  foot-hills  with  their 
glowing  color  subdued  by  a  thin  growth  of  brown 
grass,  and  merging  into  tawny  shades,  behind  them 
still  higher  hills  and  higher  yet,  peak  beyond  peak, 
the  dark  green  of  the  pines  in  cloudy  patches  on  the 
steep  sides  looking  almost  black  in  the  distance,  above 
and  beyond  them  all  the  snowy  summit  of  Pike's  Peak, 
and  over  all  the  fleckless  sky  of  intensest  azure, — 
these  are  some  of  the  outlines  of  a  picture  which 
the  most  unimpressionable  could  not  gaze  upon  with- 
out emotion.  It  seemed  as  if  we  must  be  standing  in 
the  very  forecourt  of  heaven,  and  that  the  breezes 
which  fanned  our  cheeks  were  zephyrs  from  paradise. 
Reluctantly  turning  from  the  picture  we  rode  on 
two  miles  farther,  over  a  delightful  road,  with  strange 
groups  of  lofty  red  monumental  rocks  appearing  on 
either  hand,  crossed  several  times  a  shallow  streamlet, 


30  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

and  as  we  passed  an  attractive  little  porter's  lodge, 
where  flowers  are  on  sale,  entered  a  winding  avenue 
through  wild  shrubbery,  where  new  vistas  are  con- 
stantly unfolding,  till  at  length  we  reached  Glen  Eyrie, 
an  elegant  modern  residence,  with  balconies  and 
porches  and  turrets  and  all  the  angles  and  eccentri- 
cities of  an  approved  "  Queen  Anne  "  structure,  built 
close  up  to  the  rough,  almost  vertical  mountain  wall 
towering  many  hundred  feet  above  it,  while  tall  red 
pillars  like  giant  sentinels  keep  watch  and  ward,  the 
loftiest,  styled  the  Major  Domo,  I  should  judge  not 
less  than  two  hundred  feet  in  height.  This  residence, 
so  unique  in  its  surroundings,  so  appropriately  named 
Glen  Eyrie,  is  the  home  of  Gen.  Palmer,  ex-president 
of  the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande  railways. 

Williams'  Canon  is  a  wild  gorge  with  high  perpen- 
dicular or  overhanging  walls  of  red  rock,  built  up 
stratum  upon  stratum,  in  some  places  having  as  many 
shades  of  color  as  a  modern  "  Queen  Anne  "  cottage, 
but  always  the  deep  red  at  the  base.  The  canon  is 
tortuous,  and  sometimes  so  narrow  there  is  little  more 
than  room  for  the  carriage  to  pass.  The  walls  are 
several  hundred  feet  in  height,  and  their  beauty  of 
color  is  comparable  to  nothing  seen  anywhere  in  the 
East,  unless  it  be  the  rocks  at  Gay  Head,  Martha's 
Vineyard.  The  wildness  and  grandeur  of  the  scenery 
fill  us  with  a  strange  awe,  and  as  we  stand  in  the 
narrow  cleft,  and  our  eyes  follow  the  lines  of  masonry 
placed  by  the  Infinite  Builder,  up,  up,  up,  to  the  strip 


CAVE    OF     THE     WINDS.  31 

of  blue  overhead,  we  almost  wonder  if  this  be  not  the 
strait  and  narrow  way  that  leads  up  to  heaven.  A 
solitary  walk  through  this  canon  on  a  succeeding  day 
did  not  lessen  its  impressiveness. 

A  mile  and  a  half  from  Manitou  through  this  canon 
is  the  Cave  of  the  Winds,  the  entrance  to  which  is 
two  hundred  feet  above  the  bottom  of  the  canon. 
This  cave  was  discovered  some  four  years  ago,  two 
boys  by  the  name  of  Peckett  exploring  about  one  hun- 
dred feet.  Since  then  Mr.  George  W.  Snider,  one  of 
the  owners,  has  found  one  hundred  and  seventy  cham- 
bers, forty-seven  of  which  are  open  so  as  to  be  seen  by 
visitors.  Excavations  are  now  being  made  by  which 
several  others  will  soon  be  accessible.  "  Canopy 
Hall,"  the  largest  chamber  we  saw,  is  two  hundred  and 
twenty-five  feet  in  length.  "Grand  Hall,"  not  now 
open  on  account  of  excavations,  is  said  to  be  six 
hundred  and  fifty  feet  in  length,  its  average  height 
being  one  hundred  feet  and  average  width  fifty  feet. 
There  are  some  very  strange  and  beautiful  formations 
to  be  seen.  Canopy  Hall  takes  its  name  from  an 
umbrella  or  canopy-like  projection  on  one  side.  In 
two  chambers  there  are  what  look  like  petrified  cata- 
racts, the  carbonate  of  lime  being  deposited  so  as  to 
give  the  exact  appearance  of  water  falling  over  rocks. 
In  one  is  a  "Piece  of  Bacon"  looking,  with  a  light 
behind  it,  just  like  a  piece  of  smoked  pork  with  a 
"streak  of  fat  and  a  streak  of  lean."  The  ceiling  of 
one  chamber  is  thickly  studded  with  beautiful  coral- 


32  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

like  forms.  Stalactites  of  various  sizes  depend  from 
many.  The  "Bridal  Chamber"  and  "Museum" 
were  the  most  interesting  we  saw.  The  ceiling  of  the 
former  is  covered  with  beautiful  stalactites,  and 
some  of  the  stalagmites  beneath  have  wonderfully 
curious  shapes.  The  bride  sits  there  so  perfect  in  form 
that  it  looks  like  a  real  doll.  The  sides  of  the  muse- 
um are  covered  with  tiny  forms  of  bird  and  beast  and 
reptile,  so  perfect  they  resemble  a  toy-shop  before 
Christmas.  There  is  considerable  climbing  up  and 
down,  as  well  as  stooping  and  in  some  places  almost 
creeping,  to  get  into  the  several  chambers.  One 
narrow  passage,  thirty  feet  in  length  and  not  more 
than  three  feet  high,  is  called  "The  Tall  Man's 
Misery."  "Boston  Avenue"  is  a  long,  narrow,  wind- 
ing passage,  so  named  by  Mr.  Holden  on  account'  of 
its  crookedness.  Just  over  the  entrance  to  the  cave 
is  an  opening  in  the  cliff  near  the  summit,  called  the 
"Temple  of  Isis."  The  view  from  this  cliff  down 
the  canon  and  off  to  the  distant  mountains  is  very 
fine. 

The  Ute  Pass,  the  old  Indian  trail  over  the  moun- 
tains, if  less  impressive  than  Williams'  Canon  is  more 
picturesque,  the  swift  stream  that  dashes  madly  over 
the  rocks  in  the  narrow  defile  and  forms  the  beau- 
tiful Rainbow  Falls  giving  it  a  fascinating  interest ; 
and  there  is  not  lacking  an  element  of  excitement  as 
we  ride  along  the  narrow  wagon  road  which  winds  so 
close  to  the  perpendicular  wall  that  towers  far  above 


THE    MANITOU     SPRINGS.  33 

us  that  our  wheels  almost  touch  it,  while  on  the  other 
hand  we  look  down  over  another  perpendicular  wall 
at  whose  base  the  rushing  torrent  seethes  and  foams. 

It  is  worth  coming  a  long  distance  to  taste  the 
delicious  waters  of  the  springs  here.  Nothing  at 
Saratoga  compares  with  the  Ute  iron  and  the  Navajo 
soda  in  flavor,  to  my  taste.  I  know  nothing  of  their 
comparative  value  as  medicinal  agents,  though  these 
have  a  high  reputation,  but,  as  I  came  here  "neither 
for  health  nor  wealth,  but  for  fun,"  as  one  lady  of 
our  party  expressed  it,  the  therapeutic  quality  is  of  no 
consequence  to  me.  The  iron  spring  is  very  cold, 
forty-four  degrees,  acid,  sparkling,  contains  sulphates 
of  potash  and  soda,' chloride  of  sodium,  and  carbo- 
nates of  soda,  lime,  magnesia  and  iron.  The  Navajo 
soda  spring,  but  a  few  rods  distant  from  our  hotel,  is 
not  quite  so  cold  as  the  iron  spring,  but  is  equally 
sparkling  and  refreshing.  Add  lemon  and  sugar  an  d 
you  have  a  drink  fit  for  kings,  yet  none  too  good  for 
Raymond  excursionists. 

A  large  and  elegant  bath-house  supplied  with  the 
soda  water  is  near  the  springs.  It  is  very  handsomely 
fitted  up,  and  either  tub  or  plunge  baths  can  be 
indulged  in. 

We  came  here  too  early  in  the  season  to  see  Mani- 
tou  at  its  best.  The  cottonwoods  and  shrubbery  on 
the  banks  of  the  stream  have  not  yet  put  forth  their 
leaves,  and  the  mountain  sides,  which  have  a  thin 
growth  of  bleached-out  buffalo-grass,  will  assume  a 
greener  hue  later  in  the  season. 


34  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

The  Manitou  House,  where  we  are  staying,  is  a 
delightful  homelike  hostelry,  Bailey  &  Walker,  pro- 
prietors, with  excellent  beds,  a  good  table,  and 
everything  clean  and  tasteful.  Mrs.  Bailey,  wife  of 
the  landlord,  is  an  artist,  and  the  dining-room  is  deco- 
rated with  specimens  of  her  handiwork.  She  has 
copies  of  more  than  two  hundred  varieties  of  the 
beautiful  Colorado  wild  flowers,  which  she  has  painted 
during  the  last  four  years,  several  of  them  being 
blossoms  which  pushed  themselves  up  through  the 
snow  on  the  summit  of  Pike's  Peak.  Those  of  us  to 
whom  she  obligingly  exhibited  her  collection  enjoyed 
a  real  treat. 

I  am  getting  very  fond  of  this  charming  little 
Manitou  and  shall  leave  almost  with  regret.  Yet, 
there  is  no  rose  without  its  thorn,  and  this  retreat  is 
not  quite  perfect.  The  red  dust,  which  everywhere 
prevails,  adheres  so  to  shoes  and  clothing  that  it  takes 
a  good  deal  of  time  and  patience  to  remove  it, 
and  — ' '  What  is  that  new  building  with  the  arched 
roof?"  I  asked  the  driver.  "A  skating-rink," 
was  the  reply. 

Dr.  Bell,  an  English  gentleman,  formerly  vice- 
president  of  the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande  Railway,  now 
a  large  stockholder  in  the  Colorado  Coal  and  Iron 
Company,  has  an  elegant  residence  a  short  distance 
from  the  Manitou  House.  He  purchased  the  cele- 
brated picture  of  the  Mount  of  the  Holy  Cross, 
painted  by  Moran,  paying  ten  thousand  dollars  for  it, 


MANITOU    TO    DENVER.  35 

and  built  an  addition  to  his  house  on  purpose  for  its 
reception.  By  the  owner's  courtesy  our  party  were 
permitted  to  go  and  see  it.  One  does  not  need  to 
have  a  knowledge  of  art  to  see  that  here  is  a  master- 
piece. Its  beauty  and  perfection  grow  upon  you  the 
longer  you  gaze.  I  have  no  time  for  any  attempt  at 
description,  but  wish  to  put  on  record  one  of  the 
great  and  unexpected  pleasures  of  this  sojourn  in 
Manitou. 

We  arrived  at  this  place  Wednesday  evening,  yth 
inst.,  and  left  for  Denver  Friday  morning,  returning 
here  Saturday  night.  It  is  eighty  miles  from  here  to 
Denver,  and  after  passing  Colorado  Springs  there  is 
no  place  of  any  consequence  till  we  reach  that  city. 
Colorado  Springs  is  a  great  resort  for  invalids.  It 
has  about  five  thousand  inhabitants  and  some  of  the 
most  elegant  hotels  in  the  country.  It  commands  a 
fine  view  of  mountain  scenery,  but  the  springs  are 
here  at  Manitou,  —  not  one  nearer.  So  popular  has 
the  place  become  as  a  resort  for  consumptives,  that  it 
is  said  the  magpies  there  cough  in  ten  languages. 

The  ride  over  the  plains  to  Denver  is  an  exceed- 
ingly pleasant  one.  The  course  is  almost  due  north, 
and  there  is  a  gradual  rise  till  we  reach  the  divide, 
fifty  miles  from  Denver  and  7,551  feet  above  the  sea. 
On  the  divide  is  Palmer  Lake,  covering  some  thirty 
acres,  the  waters  of  which  are  drained  both  north 
and  south.  A  railroad  station,  a  boat-house  and  two 
or  three  fine  residences  are  located  here,  and  it  is 


36  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

designed  to  make  this  a  summer  resort.  For  the 
whole  distance  from  Colorado  Springs  to  Denver  the 
rocky  wall  bounds  the  vision  in  the  west, —  a  glori- 
ous panorama,  of  which  more  than  a  hundred  miles 
can  be  seen  at  one  view.  After  passing  the  divide 
the  Rockies  recede  somewhat  till  they,  begin  to  look 
blue  in  the  distance,  while  beyond  them  rise,  peak 
after  peak,  the  white  crests  of  the  snowy  range.  The 
gradually  rising  foot-hills  with  their  billowy  forms  and 
ruddy  tinge,  the  blue-gray  tint  of  the  mountains 
beyond  them,  and  the  snow  white  of  the  farther  and 
loftier  chain  form  a  picture  on  which  the  eye  is  never 
tired  of  gazing,  and  give  an  idea  of  the  vastness  of 
this  mountain  region  that  I  have  found  nowhere  else. 

There  is  one  peculiarity  incident  to  these  moun- 
tains, or  to  the  foot-hills,  that  is  of  frequent  occur- 
rence. The  hill  will  rise  with  a  regular  but  steep 
inclination  till  near  the  apex,  when  suddenly  a  solid 
perpendicular  wall  surmounts  it  like  a  huge  fort  or 
castle ;  sometimes  this  wall  extends  along  the  crest  of 
a  ridge  many  hundred  feet. 

As  we  approach  Denver  signs  of  cultivatioi  begin 
to  appear,  though  no  cultivators  and  very  few  houses 
are  seen,  but  the  grass  grows  greener  and  plowed  fields 
are  in  sight.  It  was  noon  when  we  reached  the  city, 
of  which  I  will  write  another  time. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

DENVER.  —  CLEAR  CREEK  CANON.  —  CENTRAL  CITY.  — 
THE    GRAND    CANON.  MARSHALL'S    PASS. 

TT  THAT  !  a  Raymond  excursion  in  Denver  and 

y  V  no  rain  !  "  was  the  exclamation  that  greeted 
our  arrival  at  the  St.  James  on  the  9th.  It  appears 
to  have  been  the  rule  hitherto  that  rain  or  snow  should 
greet  every  excursion  to  Denver  from  the  East,  so 
that  it  had  become  a  standing  joke  with  the  citizens, 
and  our  arrival  was  the  first  departure  from  this  rule. 
We  have  indeed  been  exceptionally  favored  with  fine 
weather  from  the  first,  and  the  day  of  our  visit  to 
Denver  was  very  bright  and  warm. 

I  suppose  there  is  no  town  west  of  the  Mississippi 
that  has  more  of  interest  to  the  New  Englander  than 
Denver,  so  many  of  her  prominent  citizens  had  their 
early  home  in  the  East.  Denver  is  beautifully  situated 
in  a  sort  of  basin  at  the  confluence  of  Cherry  creek 
and  South  Platte  river,  the  bottom  of  the  basin, 
where  the  business  portion  of  the  town  is  located, 
being  perfectly  level,  while  the  rim  rises  at  a  gentle 
incline  from  two  hundred  to  three  hundred  feet  on 
nearly  all  sides,  affording  delightful  sites  for  resi- 
dences, commanding  a  view  of  the  Rocky  Mountains 
two  hundred  miles  in  extent.  The  number  of  hand- 


38  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

some  and  costly  residences,  and  of  fine,  substantial 
business  blocks  is  very  large.  It  is  difficult  to  realize 
that  twenty-five  years  ago,  where  now  stands  this 
beautiful  city  with  sixty-five  thousand  inhabitants, 
there  was  only  a  trackless  plain  with  a  few  huts  to 
shelter  gold  hunters. 

The  one  feature  which  makes  Denver  entirely  dis- 
tinct from  an  eastern  city  is  the  irrigating  ditches 
through  which  little  streams  flow  along  every  street. 
No  green  thing  would  ever  appear  in  this  dry  climate 
without  irrigation,  and  the  great  drawback  to  beauty 
is  the  lack  of  foliage,  the  cottonwood  being  the  only 
tree  that  thrives  here.  This  tree  resembles  somewhat 
our  silver-leaved  poplar.  It  grows  quite  rapidly  and, 
as  one  citizen  remarked,  "  is  a  great  deal  better  than 
no  tree  at  all."  There  are  some  nice  lawns  about 
handsome  residences,  but  they  are  kept  up  at  great 
expense,  as  they  require  constant  watering,  and  water 
rates  are  costly  here. 

One  of  the  finest  business  blocks  was  built  by  Capt. 
R.  W.  Woodbury,  formerly  of  Manchester  and  the 
MIRROR.  He  came  to  Denver  eighteen  years  ago, 
and  has  grown  gray  and  rich  here.  Two  years  ago 
he  sold  out  the  Times,  which  he  had  published  ever 
since  he  came  here,  and  his  son  is  now  one  of  the 
proprietors. 

The  court-house  in  Denver  is  a  beautiful  structure 
of  gray  sandstone,  in  the  center  of  a  large  square 
on  the  hillside,  green  with  alfalfa.  A  handsome 


DENVER.  39 

fountain  adorns  the  grounds,  and  an  artesian  well  is 
close  by.  The  site  for  the  new  state  capitol  on 
"  Capitol  Hill  "  is  a  commanding  one,  and  the  edi- 
fice is  soon  to  be  erected.  The  public-school  build- 
ings in  Denver,  as  everywhere  else  in  this  western 
country,  are  among  the  finest  structures  in  the  city- 
They  have  here  a  pretty  custom  of  naming  the  dif-. 
ferent  schools  for  the  poets,  as  "  the  Bryant  School," 
"  the  Whittier  School,  "  "the  Longfellow  School," 
and  so  on.  The  National  Mining  and  Industrial 
Exposition  building,  a  little  out  of  the  city,  is  a  very 
large  and  handsome  structure  of  brick.  The  streets 
of  Denver  are  broad,  clean  and  in  excellent  condi- 
tion, although  unpaved,  the  soil  being  as  hard  and 
firm  as  concrete.  Fine  opportunities  for  the  exhi- 
bition of  speed  are  afforded,  and  we  understand  "  fast 
steppers  "  are  not  uncommon.  The  electric  light  is 
in  use  for  lighting  the  city,  four  towers  having  been 
erected  for  the  purpose. 

I  will  not  take  space  to  give  statistics  in  regard  to 
the  industries  of  Denver,  but  will  merely  say  that  the 
building  done  in  1882  amounted  to  over  four  million 
dollars,  and  the  sales  of  malt  and  spirituous  liquors 
to  two  millions.  Nine  railroads  center  here,  and  the 
union  depot  is  an  elegant  structure  built  of  a  beau- 
tiful stone  in  pink  and  buff  tints,  a  sandstone,  or 
perhaps  of  volcanic  origin.  There  are  numerous  other 
handsome  buildings  of  the  same  material.  Denver  is 
5,139  feet  above  the  sea  level,  and  the  dry,  clear  air 


40  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

is  undoubtedly  beneficial  to  many  people  who  cannot 
endure  the  changeable  climate  of  the  East.  Yet 
there  are  sudden  changes  of  temperature  here  quite 
as  extreme  as  in  New  England,  as  I  am  informed  by 
a  lady  who  has  lived  in  Colorado  four  years  that  she 
had  known  the  mercury  to  fall  thirty  degrees  in  thirty 
minutes. 

The  guide-books  speak  of  the  air  as  very  electric. 
Of  the  truth  of  this  I  can  bear  witness,  as  on  apply- 
ing the  brush  to  my  clothing  it  crackles  like  a  hem- 
lock fire.  If  I  don't  lose  it  before  I  get  home,  I 
shall  have  enough  electricity  stored  up  to  furnish  the 
stock  in  trade  of  a  "  magnetic  healer.  " 

We  left  Denver  Saturday  morning,  May  10,  by  the 
Colorado  Central  narrow-gauge,  for  a  trip  through 
Clear  Creek  Canon  to  Central  City.  From  Denver 
to  Golden,  the  former  capital  of  the  state, .the  land 
near  the  railroad  is  mostly  under  cultivation,  irriga- 
ting ditches  being  everywhere  seen.  Some  plowing 
had  been  done,  but  there  were  no  signs  of  planting. 
Our  course  is  west  from  Denver,  and  we  obtain  a  fine 
view  of  the  mountains  in  the  distance,  with  a  splendid 
sweep  of  plain.  Toward  the  north  is  seen  the  snowy 
crest  of  Long's  Peak,  14,300  feet  high,  and  farther 
to  the  west  Gray's  Peak,  14,566  feet  above  the  sea 
level.  Hills  crowned  with  perpendicular  walls  of 
stratified  rock  looking  like  forts  or  castles  are  fre- 
quently seen.  At  Golden  we  make  no  stay,  but  from 
the  train  we  see  the  elegant  public-school  building, 


CLEAR    CREEK    CANON.  41 

the  school  of  mines,  the  state  reform  school  and  the 
court-house.  Soon  after  leaving  Golden  we  began  to 
enter  Clear  Creek  Canon.  As  I  looked  upon  the 
dark,  muddy  stream  I  thought  the  name  had  been 
given  in  irony  until  I  learned  that  it  was  colored  by 
the  washings  from  the  stamp  mills  and  mines.  Pos- 
sibly the  creek  may  have  been  clear  once,  though  I 
have  not  seen  a  clear  stream,  such  as  we  have  every- 
where in  New  Hampshire,  since  I  left  the  East.  The 
nearest  approach  to  it  was  a  tiny  rivulet  running  down 
through  Williams'  Canon  at  Manitou.  Clear  creek 
runs  through  one  of  the  richest  and  oldest  mining 
sections  of  the  state.  The  rugged  wildness  of  these 
rocky  fastnesses  is  very  impressive,  and  the  constant 
turns  made  by  the  railroad  as  it  follows  the  tortuous 
windings  of  the  stream  constantly  open  up  new  views. 
I  think  this  must  be  the  crookedest  railroad  in  the 
world.  So  short  and  sudden  are  the  turns  that  our 
train  frequently  appears  to  be  rushing  straight  to 
destruction  against  the  solid  rock,  and  the  next 
instant  the  engine  rounds  a  sharp  curve  and  is  hidden 
entirely  from  sight  of  the  rear  of  the  train.  Some- 
times we  shoot  under  an  overhanging  rock  a  thousand 
feet  abov.e  us^;  sometimes  we  are  not  more  than  three 
feet  above  the  surface  of  the  water  with  just  room 
enough  for  the  narrow-gauge  track  between  it  and 
the  vertical  mountain  wall,  and  sometimes  the  stream  » 
is  fifty  feet  beneath  us. 


42  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

A  few  miners  were  seen  at  work,  and  many 
abandoned  troughs  (I  don't  know  the  technical  name) 
used  for  washing  the  sand  from  the  ore.  At  Black- 
hawk,  twenty  miles  from  Golden  and  2,200  feet  higher 
in  altitude,  there  are  three  stamping-mills  (these  are 
mills  for  crushing  the  rock  taken  from  the  mines  and 
separating  the  ore),  and  one  mile  from  here,  by  the 
road,  is  Central  City;  but  the  railroad,  which  has  to 
make  an  ascent  of  five  hundred  feet  from  this  point, 
turns  quickly  about,  and  by  the  "switch-back" 
method  makes  several  tangents,  leaps  the  two  princi- 
pal streets  of  the  city  on  iron  bridges,  and  at  last, 
after  making  a  distance  four  miles  from  Blackhawk, 
lands  us  away  up  on  the  rugged  side  of  Mammoth 
Hill,  overlooking  the  entire  gulch.  Unfortunately 
a  sudden  shower  came  upon  us  just  as  we  commenced 
this  zigzag,  necessitating  the  dropping  of  the  curtains 
of  our  observation-cars  and  preventing  a  good  view 
or  a  realization  of  the  hazardousness  of  the  situation, 
which  makes  most  travelers  hold  their  breath  as  they 
go  over  this  track  for  the  first  time. 

Central  City  is  more  like  my  preconceived  ideas 
of  a  mining  town  than  any  I  have  seen.  Rough, 
barren  and  rocky,  with  no  green  thing  in  sight,  built 
around  the  sides  of  the  mountains,  one  street  above 
another,  one  wonders  how  even  the  greed  for  gold  can 
make  one  contented  here.  Yet  it  is  seldom  you  meet 
with  an  old  settler,  in  any  of  these  western  towns,  no 
matter  how  forlorn  the  situation,  who  will  not  claim 


CENTRAL    CITY.  43 

that  his  particular  location  has  some  advantages  over 
any  other  in  the  United  States.  A  bright  boy,  how- 
ever, who  was  a  volunteer  guide  to  a  few  of  us  who 
walked  from  Central  City  down  to  Blackhawk,  and 
who  informed  me  that  his  father  was  killed  in  a  mine 
nine  years  ago,  and  that  his  mother  had  lived  in  Cen. 
tral  City  sixteen  years,  was  free  to  express  his  disgust 
with  the  surroundings.  "Your  miners  make  good 
pay  here,  do  they  not?"  we  asked.  "Yes,  but  it 
costs  like  thunder  to  live  here.  Why,  we  have  to  pay 
thirty-five  cents  a  barrel  for  water  !  "  I  predict  that 
boy  will  not  remain  in  Central  City  after  he  becomes 
a  man. 

The  Bonanza,  the  Bobtail  and  the  German  are  the 
principal  mines  now  being  worked  here.  •  About  half 
way  from  Central  City  down  to  Blackhawk  is  the 
Bonanza,  where  a  tunnel  has  been  made  into  the  side 
of  the  mountain  to  the  depth  of  five  hundred  feet, 
and  will  be  continued  as  far  as  ore  is  found.  Our 
party  nearly  all  passed  through  this  tunnel  to  see  what 
a  mine  was  like.  We  next  visited  the  stamping-mills 
at  Blackhawk, and  then  taking  the  cars  at  that  station, 
were  soon  on  our  way  back  to  Denver  and  to  Mani- 
tou,  arriving  there  late  in  the  evening. 

Sunday  and  Monday  were  passed  in  Manitou,  and 
Tuesday  morning  wa  again  started  for  South  Pueblo, 
where  we  took  another  branch  of  the  Denver  &  Rio 
Grande  Railway  for  a  ride  through  the  Grand  Canon 
of  the  Arkansas,  the  Royal  Gorge,  and  over  Marshal} 


44  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Pass.  The  first  town  we  reach  is  Canon  City, 
forty-one  miles  from  Pueblo,  where  there  is  said  to  be 
a  population  of  two  thousand,  though  I  am  beginning 
to  doubt  the  accuracy  of  the  figures  given  in  regard 
to  these  western  towns  in  some  instances.  The  chief 
industry  here  is  coal  mining.  Directly  we  leave  Canon 
City  we  begin  to  penetrate  the  Grand  Canon,  the 
most  wonderful  and  celebrated  of  all  the  canons  of 
this  wonderful  region.  The  Arkansas  river,  whose 
sluggish  course  over  the  Kansas  and  Colorado  plains 
we  have  followed  for  nearly  five  hundred  miles,  here 
rushes  and  roars  through  the  narrow  confines  of  its 
rocky  walls,  a  reckless,  foaming  torrent.  About  a 
mile  beyond  the  entrance  of  the  canon  the  opening 
begins  to  grow  narrower,  the  lofty  walls  loftier,  and 
the  track  is  so  crooked  that  the  walls  seem  to  close  up 
before  and  behind.  There  is  barely  room  between 
them  for  the  stream  and  the  railroad,  which  is  built 
close  up  to  the  wall  on  the  left  bank,  until  we  come 
to  the  narrowest  portion  of  the  Royal  Gorge,  where 
the  rocky  sides  of  the  chasm  are  only  thirty  feet  apart, 
and  the  track  is  laid  over  a  bridge  running  lengthwise 
of  the  stream  for  ten  rods,  and  suspended  from  steel 
rafters  mortised  into  the  rocks  overhead.  Here  the 
walls  rise  vertically  nearly  3,000  feet  in  sublime  and 
awful  grandeur.  These  walls  are  many  hued  and 
beautiful,  a  red  granite  being  at  the  foundation.  Just 
after  passing  this  point  the  train  stopped,  and  the 
party  all  assembled  on  the  bridge,  where  their  photo- 
graphs were  taken. 


THE    ROYAL    GORGE.  45 

There  was  a  sharp  struggle  between  the  Atchison, 
Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  and  the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande 
roads  to  get  possession  of  this  canon,  and  the  latter 
company  suspended  men  from  the  top  of  the  awful 
precipice  while  they  drove  the  spikes  with  which  to 
hang  the  bridge,  and  a  company  of  armed  men  stood 
on  the  cliff  to  prevent  any  interference  with  their 
work.  This  was  done  before  a  foot  of  the  track  had 
been  laid. 

The  whole  length  of  the  canon  is  eight  miles,  and 
the  Royal  Gorge,  or  deepest  and  narrowest  portion, 
is  about  half  the  distance.  Soon  after  emerging  from 
the  canon  we  reach  Salida,  where  we  lunch.  The 
valley  opens  out  here,  forming  a  small  park,  as  these 
mountain  plains  are  called.  The  scenery  is  very  fine, 
the  beautiful  Sangre  de  Christo  range  with  its  snow- 
patched  summits  and  purple  sides  ever  attracting  our 
admiring  gaze.  Salida  is  the  junction  of  the  Salt 
Lake  and  Gunnison  divisions  and  the  Leadville 
division  of  the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande  Railway,  and 
has  twelve  hundred  inhabitants.  Four  miles  from 
Salida  we  pass  Poncha  Springs,  where  there  are 
hot  springs  said  to  have  valuable  medicinal  qualities. 
Six  miles  farther  west,  at  Mears,  we  begin  the  ascent 
of  Marshall  Pass,  the  continental  divide,  the  highest 
railroad  point  in  America,  being  10,760  feet,  or  more 
than  two  miles,  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  The  road 
up  this  ascent  is  a  triumph  of  engineering  skill.  The 
distance  from  Salida  to  the  Pass  is  twenty-five  miles, 


46  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

but  a  direct  road  would  probably  be  less  than  two-thirds 
that  distance.  The  track  winds  around  the  sides  of  the 
successive  mountains,  back  and  forth,  till  sometimes 
we  look  down  upon  four  parallel  lines  of  the  road, 
and  ever  as  we  turn  westward  the  snowy  summit  of 
Mt.  Ouray  rises  before  us.  The  views  as  we  climb 
upward  are  grand  beyond  description.  Mountains 
to  the  right  of  us,  mountains  to  the  left  of  us,  moun- 
tains before  us,  mountains  beneath  us,  in  billowy  forms 
and  varying  colors  of  brown  and  red  and  gray  and 
blue  and  shining  white,  the  beautiful  heights  of  the 
long  Sangre  de  Christo  (blood  of  Christ)  range  in  the 
distance,  and  we  look  down  into  deep  ravines  filled 
with  snow  and  away  to  distant  valleys.  A  large  por- 
tion of  our  party  have  visited  the  most  celebrated 
mountain  scenery  in  Europe,  but  they  are  agreed 
that  nothing  surpasses  this  in  grandeur  and  magnifi- 
cence. Up'  we  go  around  the  spurs  of  Mt.  Ouray, 
whose  snow-crowned  summit,  14,043  feet  high,  towers 
above  us,  till  we  at  length  reach  the  divide.  Here 
we  all  leave  the  cars  for  a  few  moments,  and  then 
start  down  the  western  slope,  whose  waters  find  their 
way  at  last  to  the  Pacific  Ocean.  Long  snow-sheds 
conceal  the  view  a  good  portion  of  the  way,  there 
being  six  miles  of  them  in  all,  but  we  get  glimpses  of 
precipitous  depths,  of  wild  and  rugged  peaks.  The 
railroad  makes  loops  and  zigzags  as  on  the  other  side, 
and  the  Tomichi  creek  flows  swiftly  along  a  large 
portion  of  our  way.  It  is  seventeen  miles  to  Sar- 


MARSHALL   PASS.  47 

gent's,  which  we  reach  about  dark,  and  after  supper 
spend  the  night  in  our  sleeping-berths  on  the  track. 
Some  of  the  dwellers  here,  who  are  mostly  railroad 
hands,  amuse  themselves  by  lighting  a  big  bonfire 
and  firing  off  a  few  shots  after  we  retire,  perhaps  to 
frighten  the  timid  ones.  This  road  runs  to  Salt  Lake 
City,  but  in  the  early  morning  we  retrace  our  way 
over  the  divide  to  Salida,  where  we  switch  off  upon 
the  Leadville  track.  Of  our  visit  to  this  most  im- 
portant mining  town  in  America,  I  will  write  in 
my  next. 


CHAPTER  V. 

• 

LEADVILLE. LA  VETA  PASS. OVER  RATON  MOUNTAIN 

TO     NEW    MEXICO. 

T  EADVILLE  is  sixty-two  miles  from  Salida  and 
I  the  road  makes  a  gradual  ascent  from  that  point 
until  we  reach  the  town,  10,025  feet  above  the  sea. 
The  College  range  of  mountains  soon  comes  into 
view  on  our  left,  and  for  the  whole  distance  the  scen- 
ery is  grand  and  beautiful.  Leadville  is  situated  on 
a  plateau,  with  lofty,  snow-covered  mountains  to  be 
seen  on  every  hand.  We  arrived  about  3  p.  M.,  and 
were  taken  in  omnibuses  a  mile  or  more  about  the 
•unattractive  outskirts  of  the  town  before  reaching  the 
main  street  and  our  hotel.  The  shabby,  forlorn- 
looking  shanties,  many  of  them  vacant,  the  rusty  tin 
cans  and  other  debris  scattered  about  the  dirty,  dusty, 
streets,  made  the  term  "God-forsaken"  especially 
appropriate.  As  we  reached  the  business  part  of  the 
town,  however,  the  aspect  of  the  buildings  improved, 
and  there  were  some  very  neat  residences  and  excel- 
lent stores.  I  have  seen  no  markets  since  we  came 
West  more  attractive  than  those  of  Leadville,  and  one 
dry-goods  store  that  I  entered  was  as  well  if  not 
better  stocked  than  any  store  in  Manchester.  There 
are  nice  brick  school  buildings  with  graded  schools, 


50  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

and  Congregational,  Baptist,  Episcopal,  Methodist, 
Presbyterian,  Christian  and  Catholic  churches.  The 
story  is  told  how  a  minister  here  was  annoyed  one 
Sunday  by  the  hammering  in  a  blacksmith-shop  close 
by,  «and  sent  a  man  out  to  request  the  blacksmith  to 
desist  from  work  till  after  the  meeting,  as  the  noise 
disturbed  the  service.  To  this  the  smith  replied  that 
he  must  work,  as  "  he  had  agreed  to  shoe  the  deacon's 
horse  while  he  was  at  church." 

A  building  on  a  street  corner  has  a  gothic  porch 
with  the  sign,  "  The  Little  Church  Around  the 
Corner,"  but  it  is  manifest  that  something  quite  other 
than  the  gospel  is  dispensed  there.  The  same  grim 
humor  that  puts  the  sign  of  a  church  over  a  drinking- 
saloon  crops  out  here  in  numerous  ways.  One  of  the 
most  prominent  gambling-saloons  in  the  city,  which 
some  of  our  party  visited  during  the  evening  under 
escort  of  the  chief  of  police,  has  a  large,  open  Bible 
on  a  high  desk  close  by  the  entrance,  and  the  well- 
thumbed  leaves  show  that  it  has  often  been  handled, 
and  we  were  assured  that  it  is  much  read.  Across 
the  face  of  the  clock  on  the  wall  above  are  the  words 
in  large  letters,  "Please  don't  swear."  Several 
games  of  poker  and  faro  were  in  progress  here,  and 
although  we  couldn't  "  tell  t'other  from  which  "  we 
saw  a  pile  of  gold  coins  change  hands  very  quickly 
while  we  looked  on.  We  also  visited  a  saloon  on 
another  street  where  the  sign  * '  Free  Beer ' '  was  over 
the  entrance,  and  a  dance  hall  was  connected  with  the 


LEADVILLE,  51 

saloon.  A  piano  and  violin  furnished  music  for  a 
quadrille,  the  dancing-room,  which  was  separated 
from  the  front  part  by  a  low  fence,  being  sufficient 
for  only  one  set.  The  girls  who  participated  in  this 
dance  all  wore  print  aprons  of  the  style  called  "tiers," 
reaching  nearly  to  the  bottom  of  their  skirts,  and 
tied  low  down  with  broad  strings.  Two  of  them 
wore  straw  hats,  one  wore  a  jockey  cap,  and  the  head 
of  the  other  was  not  covered.  The  men  all  wore  hats 
and  had  pipes  or  cigars  in  their  mouths  while  dancing. 
It  was  a  rough-looking  crowd  truly,  but  I  have  seen 
harder  faces,  both  of  men  and  women,  far  remote 
from  the  frontier. 

Apropos  of  a  rough  crowd,  some  of  us  were  quite 
amused  at  the  remark  of  the  colored  porter  of  our 
sleeping-car.  As  we  left  the  train  at  the  Leadville 
station  he  was  asked  if  he  would  take  care  of  the 
wraps  and  bags  remaining  in  the  car.  Mindful  of  the 
reputed  desperate  character  of  the  denizens  of  Lead- 
ville, and  the  possibility  that  unaided  he  would  not 
be  able  to  cope  with  any  plunderers  who  might  assail, 
he  cautiously  replied  :  "  Me  and  God  will  take  care 
of  them." 

The  mines  of  Leadville,  from  which  over  seventeen 
million  dollars  in  bullion  were  taken  in  1882,  a 
greater  amount  than  in  any  previous  year,  were  an 
object  of  interest  to  many,  and  several  of  our  party 
went  down  a  shaft  to  see  how  the  mines  were 
worked.  There  are  fifteen  smelting  and  reduction 


52  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

works,  besides  foundries,  machine-shops,  etc.,  and  it 
takes  six  banks  to  handle  the  money. 

The  aspect  of  Leadville  is  that  of  a  place  where 
people  come  to  make  money  and  not  to  make  homes, 
and  little  is  done  toward  beautifying  or  improving 
the  residences  or  streets;  yet  if  the  residents  there 
expected  to  remain,  and  had  faith  in  its  future,  the 
same  money  and  taste  expended  that  have  made 
Denver  beautiful  would  render  Leadville  extremely 
attractive.  I  am  glad  I  have  seen  Leadville,  but  one 
visit  is  enough. 

We  left  this  most  elevated  town  in  North  America 
about  half  past  ten  p.  M.,  reaching  South  Pueblo 
Thursday  in  season  for  breakfast.  Our  narrow-gauge 
sleeping-car  berths  are  not  "as  wide  as  a  door  nor  as 
deep  as  a  well,  but  they  will  do ' '  — better  than  none, 
and  what  we  lack  in  space  we  make  up  in  fun  over  the 
situation. 

At  South  Pueblo  we  take  the  Durango  &  Silverton 
branch  of  the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande  Railway  for  a  trip 
to  La  Veta  Pass.  We  were  originally  booked  for  Sil- 
verton instead  of  Leadville,  but  the  snow  was  still  so 
deep  at  the  former  place  it  was  not  considered  safe  to 
take  an  excursion  train  there,  and  so  we  missed  the 
wonderful  scenery  of  the  Toltec  Gorge. 

The  La  Veta  Pass  is  at  the  south  end  of  the  beau- 
tiful Sangre  de  Christo  range,  at  an  altitude  of  nearly 
10,000  feet.  Our  course  is  south  from  Pueblo  to 
Cucharas,  fifty  miles,  thence  in  a  southwesterly  direc- 


LA   VETA    PASS.  53 

tion  along  Cucharas  river  to  La  Veta  at  the  base  of 
La  Veta  Mountain,  where  we  begin  the  ascent,  the 
average  grade  for  twenty-one  and  one-half  miles  being 
two  hundred  and  eleven  feet  to  the  mile.  The  lovely 
Spanish  Peaks  are  to  the  south  of  us,  the  Sangre  de 
Christo  before  us,  and,  as  we  ascend,  the  huge  barren 
mass  of  La  Veta  Mountain  grows  more  and  more 
stupendous,  and,  as  our  course  winds,  new  outlines 
continually  present  themselves.  W,e  make  the  Mule 
Shoe  curve  at  the  head  of  the  glen,  — the  most  abrupt 
curve  known  to  railroad  engineering, — and  wind  our 
serpentine  course  around  the  sides  of  Dump  Mountain 
and,  reaching  the  summit,  or  Inspiration  Point,  our 
panting  iron  steed  pauses  and  we  all  leave  the  car  to 
gaze  upon  the  scene  before  us, — a  scene  so  grandly 
-beautiful  that  one  enthusiastic  gazer  declared  this  one 
view  was  worth  coming  the  whole  distance  to  see. 
As  no  words  of  mine  could  convey  any  idea  of  the 
magnificent  panorama,  I  forbear  the  attempt.  A  mile 
farther  brings  us  to  the  summit  of  the  pass,  more  and 
more  mountains  coming  into  view  as  we  rise,  and  at 
the  top  we  all  get  out  and  drink  of  the  ice-cold  water 
drawn  from  the  well,  and  gather  little  souvenirs  of 
the  place. 

Returning  to  La  Veta  we  proceed  to  El  Moro, 
where  the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande  meets  the  Atchi- 
son,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  road.  We  pass  the  night 
here  in  our  sleeping-cars  and  Friday  morning  early 
proceed  on  our  way  southward  to  Santa  Fe  over  the 


54  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Raton  Pass,  which  is  the  border  land  between  Colo- 
rado and  New  Mexico.  A  few  miles  from  El  Moro 
is  Trinidad,  at  the  foot  of  Raton  Mountain,  an  old 
Mexican  town,  the  center  of  a  large  mining  business 
and  cattle  trade.  The  whole  country  here  seems  to 
be  underlaid  with  coal. 

It  is  fifteen  miles  from  Trinidad  to  the  tunnel  at 
the  summit  of  Raton  Pass,  and  I  sit  on  the  rear  plat- 
form as  we  ascend  and  look  for  the  last  time  upon 
Colorado.  The  morning  is  clear  and  cool,  the  deep 
blue  of  the  sky  occasionally  flecked  by  fleecy  clouds. 
Nearly  a  hundred  miles  away  tower  the  twin  crests  of 
my  beautiful  Spanish  Peaks,  radiant  as  when  they  first 
met  the  sight  on  the  morning  of  our  entrance  into 
Colorado.  Now  as  I  gaze  upon  them  for  the  last 
time,  through  this  bright  morning  air,  their  shadowy- 
portions  blue  in  the  far  distance,  new  radiance  seems 
to  break  from  their  snowy  summits,  and  instinctively 
recur  the  words  of  the  Psalmist:  "Lift  up  your 
heads,  O  ye  gates,  and  be  ye  lifted  up,  ye  everlasting 
doors ;  and  the  King  of  Glory  shall  come  in.  " 

The  grade  of  the  road  over  Raton  Mountain  is  one 
hundred  and  ninety-five  feet  to  the  mile,  and  the 
course  is  a  comparatively  straight  one,  following  the 
"old  Santa  Fe  trail."  A  courteous  and  communica- 
tive brakeman,  who  shared  with  me  the  rear  platform 
of  the  train,  pointed  out  the  great  square  adobe  house 
of  "  Uncle"  Dick  Wootton,  who  discovered  this  trail, 
and  who  used  to  take  toll  of  all  who  passed  over  it; 


THE    RATON    PASS.  55 

also  was  pointed  out  the  "  Devil's  Gap  "  where  the 
followers  of  Dick  Turpin  likewise  took  toll,  and 
sometimes  murdered  their  victims. 

As  the  brakeman  noted  the  marked  contrast  of  the 
weather  this  fine  morning  with  the  snow-storm  which 
attended  the  previous  Raymond  party,  I  was  reminded 
of  the  remark  of  the  colored  porter  of  our  sleeping- 
car, —  who  had  been  detailed  to  go  into  the  mountains 
with  each  of  the  excursions,  but  was  not  sufficiently 
impressed  by  the  scenery  to  be  oblivious  to  bodily 
comfort,  —  that  he  had  "  no  use  for  a  country  where 
it  snows  in  the  middle  of  the  summer." 

The  brakeman  was  enthusiastic  over  the  beneficial 
effects  of  Colorado  air.  He  had  been  a  semi-invalid 
all  his  life,  but  had  come  here  from  the  East  two  years 
ago  and  had  found  new  life  and  strength.  "From 
what  part  of  the  East  did  you  come?"  I  asked. 
"  From  Iowa,"  was  the  reply.  And  we  recalled  the 
lines  of  Pope  :  — 

"  Where  is  the  North  ? 
At  York  'tis  on  the  Tweed." 

Great,  indeed,  is  Colorado  !  great  in  her  vast  area, 
great  in  her  boundless  plains,  great  in  her  exhaustless 
mines,  great  in  her  matchless  mountain  parks,  great 
in  her  salubrious  air  and  health-giving  springs,  great- 
est and  grandest  in  her  wondrous  scenery.  We  may 
read  of  a  chain  of  mountains  three  thousand  miles  in 
length  and  three  hundred  miles  in  width  without  being 
greatly  impressed,  but  enter  into  this  vast  Rocky 


56  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Mountain  region,  climb  any  of  the  passes  traversed  by 
the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande  railways,  and  see  as  far  as 
the  eye  can  reach  in  all  directions  mountain  range 
upon  mountain  range,  peak  beyond  peak,  in  all  their 
varied  forms,  and  diverse  hues  of  brown  or  gray  or 
blue  or  snowy  white,  as  they  may  be  near  or  remote* 
note  the  broad  parks  or  table-lands,  level  as  a  prairie, 
between  the  ranges,  some  of  them  large  enough  to 
hold  the  state  of  New  Hampshire,  and  we  begin  to 
have  some  conception  of  the  immensity  of  this  back- 
bone of  the  continent.  The  hardy  pioneers  who,  led 
by  the  thirst  for  gold,  first  explored  these  mountain 
fastnesses  builded  better  than  they  knew.  They  not 
only  paved  the  way  for  untold  additions  to  the  material 
resources  of  the  country,  but  for  the  opening  up  to 
the  knowledge  and  reach  of  mankind  of  a  new  world 
of  transcendent  grandeur  and  sublimity. 

When  we  emerged  from  the  half-mile  tunnel  near 
the  summit  of  Raton  Mountain  we  were  in  New 
Mexico,  at  once  the  oldest  and  the  newest  part  of  our 
country.  Raton,  where  we  stopped  for  breakfast,  is 
at  the  foot  of  the  Raton  Mountain,  yet  6,686  feet 
above  the  sea  level.  The  population,  some  twenty-five 
hundred,  is  largely  made  up  of  the  employes  of  the 
Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  Railroad,  which  has 
extensive  repair-shops  here.  Raton  is  also  the  center 
of  a  large  coal-mining  industry.  From  Raton  to  Las 
Vegas,  one  hundred  and  fourteen  miles,  we  had  an 
uninterrupted  mountain  view  on  the  west  and  limitless 


STARVATION    PEAK.  57 

plains  on  the  east.  Large  flocks  of  sheep  were  feeding 
on  these  plains.  New  Mexico  has  more  sheep  than 
any  other  state  or  territory  in  the  Union.  At  Las 
Vegas  we  switched  off  on  a  branch  road  five  miles  to 
Las  Vegas  Hot  Springs  where  we  spent  an  hour. 
These  springs  are  noted  for  their  medicinal  virtues 
and  the  place  is  much  resorted  to  for  the  sake  of  the 
baths,  prominent  among  which  are  the  mud  baths  for 
the  cure  of  skin  diseases.  An  elegant  hotel  here  was 
burned  last  winter,  but  a  new  one  is  in  course  of 
erection  on  a  more  commanding  site. 

Soon  after  leaving  Las  Vegas  the  soil  begins  to 
assume  a  terra-cotta  hue  and  the  hills  are  clothed  with 
trees  of  pine,  pinon  and  cedar,  their  dark  green 
color  being  in  pleasing  contrast  to  the  red  soil.  The 
scenery  is  more  varied  and  interesting,  and  the  blue 
and  purple  mountains,  flecked  with  flying  cloud 
shadows  in  the  afternoon  light,  are  very  beautiful. 
Starvation,  Peak  is  a  prominent  point  in  the  landscape. 
It  is  a  conical-shaped  mountain,  standing  by  itself, 
the  apex  being  crowned  with  a  parapet  of  solid  rock. 
From  the  summit  gleam  two  crosses.  These  crosses 
are  to  commemorate  a  party  of  Mexicans  who  were 
driven  to  this  mountain  by  Indians  and  were  there, 
while  looking  down  upon  their  own  irrigated  fields, 
surrounded  till  they  perished  of  starvation  and  thirst. 
The  road  makes  many  windings  and  turnings,  as  it 
ascends  Glorieta  Mountain,  and  this  lone  peak  may 
be  seen  for  a  long  distance  as  we  look  behind  us.  Not 

5 


58  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

far  south  of  Starvation  Peak  is  a  long  elevation  of 
about  the  same  height  as  that  mountain,  thrown  up  in 
form  like  an  earthwork,  a  straight  wall  of  solid  rock 
surmounting  the  whole  length. 

The  ruins  of  the  old  Pecos  church,  the  subject  of 
numerous  legends,  are  pointed  out  on  our  right, 
on  the  former  site  of  the  Pueblo  of  the  Pecos.  The 
Spaniards  came  here  in  1536,  and,  as  they  made 
converts  with  the  sword,  it  is  probable  this  church  was 
built  not  long  after.  The  site  of  the  ancient  village 
was  a  beautiful  one,  on  a  ridge  in  the  valley  of  the 
Pecos,  but  only  these  ruined  walls  and  a  mass  of  debris 
remain  to  mark  the  spot.  Having  passed  Glorieta 
we  descend  through  the  Apache  Canon,  one  of  the 
wildest  and  most  beautiful  we  have  seen,  to  Lamy, 
reaching  that  point  about  sunset,  and  take  a  branch 
road,  running  eighteen  miles  northward  to  Santa  Fe, 
where,  after  four  days  and  nights  of  constant  travel, 
we  are  glad  to  rest. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

SANTA     FE. 

OANTA  Fe  is  very  old.  Everything  in  it,  except  the 
^j  Palace  Hotel  and  a  few  other  modern  buildings, 
is  very  ancient  also.  It  is  the  oldest  town  in  America. 
The  Aztecs  lived  here  in  1325,  and  nobody  knows 
how  much  earlier.  The  Spaniards  came  in  1583, 
nearly  twenty  years  after  their  occupation  of  St. 
Augustine.  They  killed  off  all  the  Indians  who  would 
not  become  converts  to  the  true  faith,  and  thus  all 
the  Pueblo  Indians  in  this  region  are  nominally  Catho- 
lics. These  Spaniards  built  "  the  oldest  church  "  in 
1640,  the  church  of  San  Miguel,  which  was  destroyed 
by  Indians,  but  rebuilt  in  1710,  and  it  is  still  used 
for  worship.  It  is  built  of  adobe  (bricks  made  of 
mud,  dried  in  the  sun  and  then  plastered  together 
with  more  of  the  same  mud).  Everything  here  is 
adobe,  except  the  few  modern  buildings  before  men- 
tioned, —  the  houses,  the  fences,  the  floors,  the  streets. 
Some  of  the  people  look  as  if  they  were  adobe,  too. 
You  can't  tell  by  the  appearance  whether  an  adobe 
house  is  ten  years  old  or  a  century. 

The  only  palace  in  the  United  States  is  in  Santa  Fe. 
It  is  three  centuries  old,  having  been  built  in  1581, 
it  is  said,  by  the  Indians,  from  material  taken  from 


60  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

an  Indian  pueblo.  Its  adobe  walls  are  five  feet  thick. 
It  is  on  one  side  of  the  plaza,  or  public  square.  It  is 
one  story  high,  with  flat  roof,  and  is  built  around  a 
central  court  or  placita.  A  veranda  or  portal,  as  it 
is  called,  extends  the  whole  length  of  the  building 
on  the  street  sides.  It  was  a  palace  of  the  Pueblos 
before  the  Spanish  conquest  of  the  Mexicans  after  they 
separated  from  the  Spanish  crown,  and  has  been 
occupied  by  the  chief  ruler  of  the  territory,  to  what- 
ever nationality  it  owed  allegiance,  down  to  its  present 
occupant,  Gov.  Lionel  A.  Sheldon.  This  old  palace 
is  full  of  historic  interest.  It  has  withstood  many 
stormy  sieges,  has  been  the  prison  of  many  important 
personages,  and  doubtless  many  dark  crimes  have 
been  perpetrated  within  its  walls. 

The  plaza  is  a  small  public  square,  containing  a 
few  trees  and  a  soldiers'  monument,  and  covered  with 
alfalfa,  whose  rich,  dark  green  is  in  pleasant  contrast 
to  the  ever  prevailing  adobe.  The  soldiers'  monu- 
ment commemorates  those  who  fell  in  the  war  of  the 
Rebellion,  and  also  those  who  died  in  contests  with 
the  Indians.  The  inscription  on  one  side  reads  : 
' '  To  the  heroes  of  the  Federal  army  who  fell  at  the 
battle  of  Valverde,  fought  with  the  Rebels,  Feb.  21, 
1862.  "  This  is  said  to  be  the  only  soldiers'  monu- 
ment in  the  country  on  which  the  word  ' '  Rebels  ' '  is 
inscribed,  and  this  has  it  on  three  faces.  From  the 
plaza  as  a  center  the  narrow,  straggling  streets,  lined 
with  low  adobe  houses,  radiate  in  all  directions. 


SANTA    FE.  6 1 

Nearly  all  the  houses  are  built  after  the  same  style  as 
the  palace,  one  story,  flat  roof,  one  room  wide,  around 
a  central  placita,  a  portal  extending  on  all  the  street 
sides.  Originally  there  were  no  windows  looking  on 
the  street,  and  there  are  still  no  doors,  a  gateway  only 
leading  to  the  placita.  Some  of  the  houses  are  plas- 
tered on  the  outside,  and  those  are  not  ill-looking. 
In  many  of  the  placitas  there  are  gardens,  flowers, 
shrubbery  and  fruits.  Several  of  our  party  are  in- 
debted to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Stark,  pastor  of  the  Presby- 
terian church  in  Santa  Fe,  for  escort  about  the  town, 
and  for  valuable  information.  Santa  Fe  is  a  military 
post,  and  the  soldiers'  quarters  are  quite  near  the 
Palace  Hotel,  where  we  are  staying.  We  visited  the 
ruins  of  old  FortMarcy  on  the  hill,  which  was  erected 
by  Gen.  Kearney  in  1846,  on  the  site  of  the  encamp- 
ment of  De  Vargas  in  1693,  and  from  this  point  ob- 
tained a  good  view  of  the  town.  The  flat  adobe  roofs 
below  us  look  like  beds  of  dried-up  ponds.  The  old 
Spanish  arsenal  near  by  is  now  occupied  as  a  dwelling 
by  some  old  women.  We  found  them  crouched  on 
the  sun-baked  earth,  their  bare  feet  looking  the  color 
and  texture  of  an  elephant's  hide,  tattered  shawls 
partly  covering  the  gray  hair  that  straggled  over  their 
dull,  deep-wrinkled,  leathery  faces,  which  lighted  up 
wonderfully,  however,  when  one  of  the  ladies  dropped 
a  coin  in  their  palms. 

The  "oldest  house  in  America  "  is  a  long,  low, 
adobe  hut,  on  a  narrow  street  on  the  banks  of  the 
Santa  Fe  river,  about  the  door  of  which  several 


62  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

women  and  children  were  grouped  as  we  approached. 
These  Mexican  women  all  have  fine  eyes,  and  some 
of  the  children  are  quite  pretty.  One  child  in  arms, 
some  ten  months  old,  had  such  a  sweet,  winning  smile 
as  to  call  forth  much  admiration,  seeing  which  a 
woman  near  by  darted  into  an  adjoining  hut  and 
brought  out  her  own  infant,  a  few  weeks  old,  for  our 
inspection.  She  also  invited  us  to  enter  her  hut. 
This,  which  is  a  sample  of  many  others,  was  not  more 
than  ten  or  twelve  feet  square,  the  rough  adobe  wall 
the  same  inside  and  out,  the  door  so  low  that  we  had 
to  stoop  to  enter  it,  and  make  one  downward  step  to 
the  floor,  which  was  only  the  hardened  earth,  as  firm 
and  smooth  as  concrete.  One  small  window  less  than 
two  feet  square  was  near  the  roof.  A  sort  of  mattress, 
on  which  several  children  were  huddled,  lay  in  one 
corner,  a  Catholic  picture  hung  upon  the  wall,  and 
that  was  about  all  the  "furniture"  in  the  room. 
The  house  looked  clean,  however,  and  the  absence  of 
any  utensils  or  means  of  cooking  is  explained  by  the 
fact  that  all  cooking  is  done  out  of  doors,  in  the 
conical,  or  beehive-shaped,  adobe  ovens. 

Besides  the  church  of  San  Miguel  there  is  another 
very  old  church  here,  that  of  San  Francisco.  Around 
and  over  this,  completely  inclosing  it,  is  now  being 
constructed  an  elegant  cathedral  of  sandstone,  which 
will  cost  $150,000.  It  has  been  some  fifteen  years  in 
building,  but  the  walls  are  not  yet  quite  completed. 
It  shuts  out  the  sun  to  that  degree  that  the  candles, 


SANTA    FE.  63 

always  to  be  found  in  Catholic  churches,  seem  to 
serve  a  useful  purpose  as  well  as  a  symbolic  one. 
This  church,  as  well  as  that  of  San  Miguel,  is  long  and 
narrow  inside,  the  rough  adobe  walls  uncovered,  but 
there  is  an  attempt  at  decoration  of  the  cross-beams 
supporting  the  roof.  The  altar  niche '  and  those 
devoted  to  Jesus  and  the  Virgin  have  the  usual  array 
of  images,  pictures,  candles,  paper  flowers,  et  cetera. 
The  pictures  are  said  to  be  very  old.  I  don't  doubt 
it.  Everything  here,  as  I  have  before  intimated,  is 
very  old.  Even  a  picture  of  Washington,  which 
hangs  in  the  convent,  one  of  the  nuns  assured  a  lady 
visitor,  is  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  old  !  Some  of 
the  Mexicans  you  meet  on  the  streets  look  as  if  they 
must  be  about  the  same  age.  I  presume  it  is  the  effect 
of  the  climate,  but  such  deep  .wrinkles  I  never  saw  in 
the  human  face  before. 

The  Santa  Fe  river,  a  shallow  stream,  runs  through 
the  town,  crossing  several  streets ;  but  the  only 
bridges  are  foot-bridges,  and  our  first  experience  in 
fording,  which  was  after  dark  on  the  night  of  our 
arrival,  took  us  all  by  surprise.  It  is  a  curious  sight 
to  see  the  burros  (small  donkeys),  with  great  loads  of 
wood  almost  as  large  as  themselves  tied  upon  their 
backs,  plodding  along  the  streets.  These  seem  to  be 
the  universal  beasts  of  burden  here,  and  it  is  said  they 
subsist  mainly  on  tin  cans  and  paper.  A  lady  upon 
whom  we  called  said  she  pasted  a  piece  of  paper  over 
a  broken  window-pane,  which  soon  disappeared,  and 


64  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

she  reprimanded  her  children  for  having,  as  she  sup- 
posed, torn  it  off;  but  again  covering  the  broken 
pane,  she  not  long  after  discovered  the  real  culprit,  a 
meek-eyed  burro,  in  the  very  act  of  pulling  the  paper 
from  the  glass. 

The  most  charming  spot  in  Santa  Fe  is  the  bishop's 
garden,  where  is  grown  in  great  luxuriance  every  kind 
of  fruit  that  can  be  made  to  thrive  in  this  climate. 
The  soil  is  very  fertile  here,  and  only  requires  irri- 
gation to  yield  most  abundantly.  Peaches,  apricots, 
pears,  plums,  cherries  and  grapes  are  produced  in 
enormous  quantities,  in  some  of  the  orchards  the 
trees  being  set  so  close  together  that  their  branches 
touch  each  other. 

The  Rt.  Rev.  John  B.  Lamy,  the  archbishop  of  a 
Catholic  diocese  embracing  all  New  Mexico,  Colo- 
rado and  Arizona,  has  his  headquarters  in  Santa  Fe, 
having  been  here  since  1850,  and  is  said  to  be  a  pro- 
gressive man  who  is  doing  much  for  the  advancement 
of  his  people,  and  it  is  through  his  energy  and  influ- 
ence that  the  new  cathedral  previously  mentioned, 
the  Brothers'  College,  which  is  largely  attended,  the 
Sisters'  School,  Orphan  Asylum  and  other  institutions 
have  been  established,  which  are  making  Santa  Fe 
one  of  the  great  centers  of  Catholic  education  and 
influence. 

I  have  before  me  the  second  annual  catalogue  of 
the  University  of  New  Mexico,  incorporated  May  n, 
1 88 1.  It  is  of  interest  to  New  Hampshire  readers 


SANTA    FE.  65 

from  the  fact  that  the  Rev.  H.  O.  Ladd,  for  several 
years  principal  of  the  New  Hampshire  Normal  School 
at  Plymouth,  is  at  its  head,  and  was  the  prime  mover 
in  its  establishment.  It  is  a  missionary  enterprise, 
and  Prof.  Ladd's  whole  soul  is  devoted  to  the  work. 
Its  chief  help  has  come  from  the  Congregational 
churches  at  the  East,  through  Prof.  Ladd's  personal 
solicitations,  and  it  will  need  much  more  assistance 
before  it  becomes  self-sustaining.  The  school  began 
three  years  ago  in  a  little  adobe  house,  with  half  a 
dozen  pupils ;  it  now  has  a  three-story  brick  building, 
with  the  nucleus  of  a  library  and  laboratory,  and 
the  number  of  pupils  enrolled  last  year  was  ninety- 
eight.  There  are  primary,  intermediate  and  academic 
grades. 

Prof.  Ladd  having  become  greatly  interested  in  the 
Pueblo  Indians,  several  villages  of  whom  are  located 
near  Santa  Fe,  has  been  studying  how  to  do  something 
for  tfreir  advancement.  He  visited  the  Indian  school 
at  Carlisle,  Penn.,  but  it  did  not  seem  to  him  that 
the  instruction  there  was  the  best  for  these  people,  as 
those  who  are  educated  there  are  coldly  received  on 
their  return  to  their  own  race,  and  have  learned  such 
different  habits  of  life  that  their  influence  is  less 
effective  than  if  they  had  not  been  so  far  removed 
from  their  old  associates.  He  has  planned,  therefore, 
a  school  at  Santa  Fe,  where  these  Indians  may  be 
taught  enough  of  the  elementary  branches  to  render 
them  intelligent,  and  given  thorough  instruction  in 


66  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

the  industrial  arts,  as  shoemaking,  carpentering, 
blacksmithing,  housekeeping,  etc.,  and  still  not  be 
removed  from  their  own  people,  so  that  as  they 
advance  their  influence  will  be  continually  exercised 
upon  those  around  them.  Mr.  Ladd  communicated 
with  the  Indian  commissioner  upon  the  subject,  and 
has  received  assurances  of  government  aid,  and  it  is 
possible  his  philanthropic  project  will  ere  long  have 
opportunity  for  development. 

A  place  of  great  interest  to  all  tourists  is  an  old 
curiosity  shop  on  San  Francisco  street.  Here  is 
such  a  collection  as  can  be  found  nowhere  else, — 
Indian  pottery  of  the  most  grotesque  forms,  old 
swords  and  daggers,  old  costumes,  Indian,  Spanish 
and  Mexican,  old  utensils  and  an  illimitable  quantity 
of  curiosities,  natural  and  manufactured,  that  all  are 
free  to  examine  at  their  leisure.  Other  places,  from 
which  visitors  seldom  go  away  empty-handed,  are  the 
jewelry  shops,  where  the  most  exquisite  silver  and 
gold  Mexican  filigree  jewelry  is  manufactured  and 
sold.  The  beauty  and  fineness  of  the  filigree  work 
are  marvelous. 

I  think  we  were  all  surprised  to  find  it  so  cool 
here.  I  expected  the  weather  would  be  hot,  but 
need  an  extra  wrap  as  I  sit  in  my  room  to  write. 
Santa  Fe  is  seven  thousand  feet  above  the  sea  level, 
and  the  altitude  offsets  the  southern  latitude,  so  that 
the  climate  is  cool  and  equable  the  year  round.  The 
town  is  protected  by  hills  from  the  winds  on  all  sides 
except  the  north. 


SANTA    FE.  67 

There  is  much  of  fascinating  interest  in  this  curious 
old  place,  so  unlike  anything  we  have  known  before, 
of  which  I  have  not  time  to  write.  «The  town  is 
unique,  but  through  the  influence  of  the  railroad  and 
the  all-conquering  Yankee  it  will,  before  many  years 
lose  the  distinctive  characteristics  which  now  consti- 
tute its  chief  interest  and  charm  to  the  traveler,  and 
those  who  would  see  the  oldest  town  in  America 
in  something  of  its  pristine  state  should  not  delay 
too  long. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

FROM  SANTA  FE  TO  LOS  ANGELES. 

WE  left  Santa  Fe  Monday  morning,  May  19, 
bound  for  Deming,  where  the  Atchison,  Topeka 
&  Santa  Fe  road  makes  a  junction  with  the  Southern 
Pacific.  It  proved  rather  a  blue  Monday  for  some  of 
our  party,  Shortly  after  entering  the  cars  we  learned 
that  there  had  been  a  washout  on  the  banks  of  the 
Rio  Grande,  which  was  liable  to  delay  our  train  for 
several  hours,  and  also  that  some  of  the  trunks,  which 
had  been  transferred  from  the  hotel  at  a  very  early 
hour,  had  been  jolted  off  the  wagon  into  the  stream 
in  crossing,  and  their  contents  pretty  thoroughly 
saturated.  Then  "there  was  hurrying  to  and  fro," 
and  the  long  baggage-car  was  immediately  trans- 
formed into  a  laundry.  Fortunately,  ours  was  a 
special  train  and  the  car  contained  only  baggage 
belonging  to  the  party,  which  left  considerable  room 
for  the  suspension  of  clothes-lines  and  the  wringing- 
out  and  drying  process.  Not  being  one  of  the  victims 
I  was  affected  only  sympathetically  by  the  accident, 
and  there  was  a  comic  side  which  the  sufferers  them- 
selves did  not  fail  to  see,  and  they  generally  joined  in 
the  merriment  which  their  labors  and  the  display  of 
linen  called  forth. 


70  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Our  first  stop  was  at  Wallace's,  a  railroad  town 
about  fifty  miles  from  Santa  Fe,  where  we  had  lunch 
brought  from  Kansas  City.  The  station  was  thronged 
with  Pueblo  Indians  —  men,  women  and  children  — 
bearing  specimens  of  their  pottery  and  bits  of  tur- 
quoise for  sale.  There  is  a  turquoise  mine  but  a  few 
miles  from  here,  which  was  worked  by  the  Spaniards 
two  hundred  years  ago,  from  which  it  is  said  a  part  of 
the  crown  jewels  of  Spain  were  obtained.  These 
Indians  had  their  legs  swathed  in  buckskin  till  they 
looked  like  stumps,  and  wore  blankets  more  or  less 
tattered  and  dirty  over  their  shoulders.  They  all 
wore  "bangs."  Noble  Prentis  says  the  Pueblo  Indian 
is  the  inventor  of  the  bang.  At  all  events,  those  we 
saw,  except  the  chief,  had  their  coarse  black  hair  cut 
square  across  the  forehead  even  with  the  eyebrows. 
The  chiefs  was  parted  in  the  middle  and  tied  behind 
with  a  red  string.  He  wore  a  gray  flannel  shirt  also. 

Learning  that  it  would  be  some  hours  before  the 
break  would  be  repaired,  our  train  went  on  a  couple 
of  miles  to  a  point  near  the  village  where  these 
Indians  live,  affording  us  an  opportunity  to  see  them 
at  home.  Their  houses  are  made  of  adobe,  two 
stories  high,  the  second  story  retreating  from  the 
first  like  a  terrace,  and  entrance  is  made  by  climbing 
a  ladder  to  the  top  of  the  first  story  and  entering 
"up-stairs"  by  a  door.  On  the  roof  of  the  first 
story  in  many  cases  are  adobe  ovens  where  the  occu- 
pants do  their  cooking,  and  here  are  kept  most  of 


PUEBLO    INDIANS.  •         71 

their  utensils.  Some  of  the  houses  have  a  door  in 
the  lower  story,  however,  and  into  one  of  these  we 
looked.  The  interior  was  whitewashed  and  the  adobe 
floor  was  swept  clean ;  a  pile  of  beans  lay  on  one 
side  of  the  room,  a  gun  hung  on  the  wall,  and  on 
the  floor  at  one  end  of  the  room  was  a  large  trough 
divided  into  two  compartments,  in  one  of  which  was 
a  slab  of  hard  rock  on  which  the  women  grind  their 
corn  with  a  rolling-pin.  One  of  them  ground  vigor- 
ously for  a  few  minutes  to  show  us  how  it  was  done. 
It  is  estimated  that  there  are  a  thousand  Indians  in 
this  village,  though  no  one  seems  to  know  exactly. 
I.f  the  dogs  are  counted  in,  I  don't  think  the  estimate 
can  be  too  low.  These  Indians  generally  speak  the 
Spanish  language  as  well  as  their  own,  and  are  nomi- 
nally Catholics.  They  have  an  old  church  here, 
adobe  like  the  rest,  but  it  only  receives  an  occasional 
visit  from  some  priest.  We  went  to  take  a  look  at 
the  church  but  found  it  locked,  and  looking  up  the 
janitor,  he  pretended  that  some  one  had  the  key  who 
was  gone  away.  A  quarter  placed  in  his  palm  proved 
an  open  sesame,  however,  and  the  door  was  soon 
unfastened.  .  The  church  is  long  and  narrow.  It  has 
a  bell  and  a  cross  upon  the  top.  Before  the  door 
there  is  a  pavement  of  pebbles  of  different  colors 
arranged  in  circles.  In  the  interior  there  is  an  altar 
with  images  and  candlesticks  which  look  as  if  several 
centuries  must  have  elapsed  since  they  were  new.  A 
confessional  box  is  on  one  side,  and  the  janitor,  to 
whom  we  talked  through  an  interpreter,  who  accom- 


72  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

panied  us  from  Wallace's,  asked  if  any  of  us  "  wanted 
to  confess."  At  our  request  he  made  a  speech  in  his 
own  language,  which,  however,  our  interpreter  could 
not  translate.  Some  little  sticks  in  the  form  of  a 
cross,  which  were  leaning  against  the  wall,  were  used, 
he  said,  to  stick  in  the  ground  when  they  wanted  it  to 
rain.  As  we  were  caught  in  a  shower  while  there,  we 
concluded  some  one  had  been  practicing  with  them 
that  day.  These  Pueblo  Indians  are  farmers,  and 
keep  cattle,  hogs  and  hens.  The  stockades  where 
their  cattle  are  corraled  were  near  by.  The  women 
make  pottery  of  various  forms  and  sizes,  on  which 
there  is  a  crude  attempt  at  decoration. 

After  dinner  at  Wallace's  our  train  had  orders  to 
move  on  to  San  Antonio,  about  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  miles,  where  we  passed  the  night  in  the 
cars,  crossing  one  washout,  which  had  been  repaired, 
but  with  another  ahead  of  us,  fifteen  miles  farther  on, 
near  San  Marcial.  There  are  two  small  hotels  at  San 
Antonio,  which  were  able  to  supply  our  party  with 
breakfast.  The  landlady,  who  was  an  intelligent 
woman  from  the  East,  said  she  never  realized  what 
the  Bible  meant  by  a  "dry  and  thirsty  land"  until 
she  came  to  New  Mexico.  We  could  appreciate  this, 
notwithstanding  we  were  detained  twenty-four  hours 
on  our  journey  by  an  overflow  of  the  Rio  Grande. 
This  stream  has  very  shallow  banks,  and  only  a  slight 
rise  is  required  to  produce  an  overflow.  The  snow 
melting  on  the  mountains  was  the  cause  of  the 
present  flood. 


THROUGH    THE    DESERT.  73 

It  was  half-past  ten  before  we  received  orders  to 
move,  and  when  we  reached  the  wash-out  the  bridge 
was  not  quite  completed.  The  stream,  which  was 
greatly  swollen,  had  forced  a  new  channel  under  the 
railroad  track.  Men  had  been  at  work  day  and  night 
for  three  days  constructing  a  bridge,  two  pile-drivers 
being  employed,  and  it  was  one  o'clock  when  we  at 
length  crossed  the  swirling,  seething  torrent.  Ours 
was  the  first  train  to  cross,  having  precedence  of  the 
regular  train.  No  dinner  at  San  Marcial,  travelers 
going  the  other  way  having  eaten  everything  out 
clean,  so  on  we  speed  to  Deming,  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  miles  farther.  The  country  through 
which  we  passed  from  Santa  Fe  to  San  Marcial  is  a 
level  one,  but  there  is  a  low  range  of  mountains  in 
sight  nearly  all  the  way,  and  there  are  cultivated 
fields  and  vineyards  occasionally  seen  on  the  banks 
of  the  Rio  Grande,  and  trees  on  the  borders  of  the 
stream.  But  soon  after  passing  Valverde,  a  short 
distance  from  San  Marcial,  we  leave  the  course  of 
the  river  and  strike  the  dreariest  part  of  our  journey. 
The  earth  is  the  color  of  ashes  and  seemingly  swept 
up  into  little  heaps  or  knolls,  with  sage-bush  scattered 
over  it  and  relieving  the  utter  monotony  of  the  desert 
through  which  we  pass  for  the  next  eighty  miles. 
This  sage-bush  grows  from  one  to  two  feet  high,  and 
in  color  looks  like  our  garden  sage,  but  I  see  little 
other  resemblance.  Occasionally  we  pass  ragged 
heaps  of  black,  volcanic  rocks  ;  indeed,  all  the  hills 
we  have  seen  since  leaving  Santa  Fe  have  signs  of 


74  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

volcanic  origin.  The  desert  journey  has  been  called 
the  "Journey  of  Death,"  from  the  fact  that  emigrants 
who  used  to  cross  before  the  railroad  was  built  were 
often  massacred  by  Indians  at  the  only  spring  to  be 
found  within  the  eighty  miles. 

At  Rincon,  seventy-five  miles  from  San  Marcial,  is 
the  junction  of  the  El  Paso  branch  of  the  Atchison, 
Topeka  &  Santa  Fe,  which  connects  with  the  Mexi- 
can Central  Railroad.  We  reached  Deming,  but  a 
few  miles  from  the  Mexican  boundary  line,  about 
sunset,  and  after  supper  took  sleeping-cars  on  the 
Southern  Pacific  Railroad,  and  arrived  in  Tucson, 
Arizona,  Wednesday  morning  about  seven  o'clock  for 
breakfast.  We  had  half  an  hour  to  look  about  us 
here.  The  sight  of  the  hotel  garden,  after  our  long 
ride  through  the  desert,  was  a  real  treat.  Tucson  is 
the  largest  town  in  the  territory,  having  a  population 
of  nearly  ten  thousand.  As  the  principal  part  of  the 
town  is  some  distance  from  the  station  we  did  not 
see  much  of  it,  but  it  looked  very  pleasant  where  we 
were.  A  gentleman  whom  we  met,  however,  who 
was  asked  by  one  of  our  party  if  he  lived  there,  was 
evidently  homesick,  as  he  answered,  "No,  I  live  in 
God' s  country." 

Our  course  through  the  Arizona  desert  to  Yuma 
was  much  more  pleasing  than  that  through  the 
"Journey  of  Death."  Flowers  were  everywhere 
along  the  way,  of  numberless  varieties  and  great 
beauty ;  cacti  of  many  kinds,  some  of  them  huge, 
bristling  pillars,  twenty  to  thirty  feet  high,  the 


YUMA.  75 

bayonet-pointed  leaves  of  the  yucca  plant  with  its 
tall  spikes  of  white  flowers,  and  many  other  strange 
growths  greeted  our  eyes.  There  is  little  doubt 
that  this  soil,  if  cultivated  and  irrigated,  would  be 
wonderfully  productive. 

At  Casa  Grande  station  a  crowd  of  Indians  gath- 
ered around,  upon  whom  were  bestowed  the  remains 
of  various  lunch-bags,  much  to  their  delectation. 
Bangs  and  dirt  were  the  prevailing  fashion  among 
them,  and  all  wore  beads. 

We  arrived  at  Yuma  at  sunset.  During  the  after- 
noon we  were  in  sight  of  the  Castellated  and  Purple 
ranges  of  mountains,  crossing  the  former.  Approach- 
ing Yuma  we  came  in  view  of  the  Colorado  river, 
and  its  luxuriant  green  banks  bordered  with  trees,  in 
vivid  contrast  to  the  desert  through  which  we  had 
passed,  the  beautiful  color  upon  the  purple  hills  in 
the  waning  afternoon  light,  the  gardens  with  tall 
hollyhocks  and  other  gorgeous  flowers  as  we  neared 
the  station,  made  our  entrance  to  "the  hottest  place 
in  the  country ' '  something  extremely  pleasant  to 
remember. 

The  noble  red  man  was  here  to  welcome  our 
arrival.  The  air  was  soft  and  warm  and  he  didn't  need 
clothes,  and  so  he  put  on  paint  instead.  He  used 
the  primary  colors — red,  yellow  and  blue — in  full 
brilliancy.  One  squaw  was  gorgeous  in  a  piece  of 
bright  yellow  cotton  cloth  drawn  about  her  shoulders, 
streaks  of  yellow  paint  on  her  banged  hair,  and  spots 
of  red  and  blue  paint  on  cheeks  and  chin.  She  was 


76  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

selling  knickknacks  to  the  crowd.  One  tall  brave 
wore  a  coat  and  nothing  more  —  except  his  paint  — 
and  another  was  equally  sumptuously  attired  in  a 
shirt.  Some  had  more  clothing,  others  less,  but  all 
wore  paint  and  bangs.  These  Yumas  are  the  tallest 
Indians  we  have  seen  anywhere,  and  bring  to  mind 
the  description  of  the  red  man  learned  in  our  earliest 
study  of  history.  The  other  residents  of  Yuma  are 
chiefly  Mexicans.  Fort  Yuma,  on  the  banks  of  the 
Colorado,  has  been  occupied  by  United  States  troops 
until  recently. 

Apropos  of  the  climate  here,  it  is  related  that  a 
wicked  soldier,  who  died  and  went  to  the  place 
where  the  wicked  are  supposed  to  find  the  weather 
sufficiently  warm,  returned  to  Yuma  the  following 
night  after  •  his  blanket,  his  new  quarters  being  too 
cool  after  his  experience  at  the  fort. 

After  supper  at  the  station  dining-rooms  (the  first 
poor  meal  we  have  had  at  a  railroad  eating-room  since 
we  left  home)  we  strolled  about  for  half  an  hour, 
looking  at  the  sunset  or  the  Indians,  and,  then,  re- 
entering  the  cars,  crossed  the  river  into  California. 
During  the  night  we  passed  through  a  sandy  desert, 
going  below  the  level  of  the  sea,  and  when  we  looked 
out  the  next  morning  we  were  near  Colton  station, 
in  a  country  where  there  were  grass  and  grain  and 
trees, —  a  glad  sight  to  eyes  so  long  unused  to  ver- 
dure. Some  sixty  miles  farther  on  is  Los  Angeles, 
which  we  reached  about  eight  o'clock  on  the  22d, 
where  we  are  to  sojourn  several  days. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

LOS    ANGELES. 

LOS  Angeles  is  the  chief  city  of  southern  Califor- 
nia, and  perhaps  is  best  known  at  the  East  as  a 
winter  resort  for  invalids.  It  is  the  center  of  a  won- 
derful fruit-growing  region,  the  Los  Angeles  and  San 
Gabriel  valleys  abounding  in  orange  groves  and  vine- 
yards. It  has  a  population  of  about  twenty-five 
thousand,  has  two  flour-mills,  a  large  woolen-mill, 
foundries,  kerosene-oil  refineries,  railroad  shops  and 
various  other  industries.  It  has  plenty  of  churches, 
schools,  newspapers,  an  elegant  new  opera-house,  etc.  ; 
what  it  chiefly  lacks,  in  the  eyes  of  the  tourist,  is 
somebody  who  knows  how  to  keep  a  hotel.  It  is  very 
pleasantly  situated,  a.  portion  of  the  town  being  on 
high  ground  overlooking  an  extensive  country  of 
beautiful  and  varied  landscape. 

It  was  a  lovely  summer  day  when  we  arrived  in  Los 
Angeles,  and  the  semi-tropical  growths,  the  graceful, 
fringe-like  foliage  of  the  pepper  trees,  the  balmy 
odors  of  the  eucalyptus,  the  delicate  verdure  of  the 
acacias,  the  dark,  rich,  glossy  green  of  the  orange 
and  lemon  trees,  the  feathery  palms  and  the  bayonet- 
leaved  yuccas,  the  luxuriant  cypress  hedges,  and, 
above  all,  the  magnificent  climbing  roses  and  other 


78  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

beautiful  and  brilliant  hued  flowers  growing  lavishly 
in  every  garden,  made  a  scene  altogether  new  and 
delightful,  and,  coming  upon  it  so  suddenly,  it  seemed 
to  us  almost  fairy -like.  There  has  been  an  extraordi- 
nary amount  of  rainfall  in  California  the  past  season, 
showers  occurring  daily  almost  up  to  the  time  of  our 
arrival,  so  that  everything  is  fresh  and  bright,  The 
barley  and  wheat  (the  main  field  crops)  are  being 
harvested.  Many  wealthy  people  have  their  winter 
home  in  Los  Angeles,  the  temperature  being  remark- 
ably equable  and  delightful,  and  it  is  claimed  that  the 
summers  are  not  oppressive,  the  nights  being  always 
cool.  We  certainly  have  not  found  the  heat  too  great 
during  our  stay.  There  are  many  beautiful  residences 
here,  with  charming  grounds,  surrounded  by  thick 
cypress  hedges,  the  streets  lined  with  long  rows  of 
pepper  and  eucalyptus  trees.  The  late  Joseph  A. 
Dodge  of  Plymouth,  manager  of  the  B.,  C.  &  M. 
Railroad,  purchased  a  house  here  a  few  months  before 
his  death,  and  Mrs.  Dodge  has  spent  the  past  winter 
here.  I  had  the  pleasure  of  a  visit  to  her  charming 
house  and  grounds  in  company  with  herself  and 
daughter,  the  latter  being  a  member  of  our  party. 
The  place  is  quite  new,  yet  there  are  a  grove  of  fifty 
orange  trees,  with  apricots,  peaches,  pears  and  other 
fruits  growing,  a  beautiful  green  lawn  and  shrubbery, 
the  loveliest  roses  and  honeysuckles  and  ivies  about 
the  veranda,  and  a  wealth  of  floral  beauty  and  per- 
fume, and  a  hedge  such  as  is  never  seen  in  the  East. 


LOS   ANGELES.  79 

Among  the  most  notable  residences  here  is  that  of  Mrs. 
Longstreet.  Her  house  is  an  elegant  one,  and  the 
grounds  very  extensive,  and  adorned  with  every  kind 
of  tree  and  flower  that  can  be  grown  here.  The 
driveway  from  the  street,  some  fifteen  or  twenty  rods 
in  extent,  besides  a  row  of  palms  has  a  border  of 
verbenas  several  feet  in  width,  extending  the  whole 
distance  on  each  side,  affording  such  a  mass  of  lovely 
bloom  as  to  call  forth  exclamations  of  delighted 
admiration. 

There  are  charming  drives  in  the  vicinity  of  Los 
Angeles.  Ever  to  be  remembered  is  that  to  the 
orange  groves  and  vineyards  of  Sierra  Madre  Villa, 
Pasadena  and  San  Gabriel.  To  say  that  the  day 
was  bright  and  beautiful  would  only  be  repeating  what 
might  be  said  of  nearly  all  the  days  of  our  journey. 
But  this  stands  out  as  more  soft  and  bright  and  beau- 
tiful than  most  others.  We  are  in  — 

"  The  land  where  the  lemon  trees  bloonij 
Where  the  gold  orange  grows  in  the  deep  thicket's  gloom, 
Where  a  wind  ever  soft  from  the  blue  heaven  blows,  " 

so  it  seems  to  us,  till  we  recall  what  has  been  told  us 
about  storms  and  floods  the  past  season,  when  houses 
were  carried  down  the  Los  Angeles  river  and  the 
streets  were  impassable,  and  we  know  that  the  "blue 
heaven  "  must  sometimes  be  obscured.  Only  the 
lightest  and  fleeciest  of  clouds  partially  veil  the  azure 
to-day,  however,  and  the  soft  air,  not  too  warm,  is 
heavy  with  the  perfume  of  orange  blossoms,  of  roses 


80  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

and  heliotropes  and  a  thousand  other  fragrant  flowers, 
as  we  take  our  way  through  Pasadena  amid  orange 
groves  or  vineyards  on  either  hand,  or,  entering 
flower-bordered  driveways  of  private  grounds,  ap- 
proach beautiful  villas  decked  in  blossoming  vines 
and  surrounded  by  gardens  of  gorgeous  bloom. 

Sierra  Madre  Villa,  "beautiful  for  situation," 
eighteen  hundred  feet  above  the  sea,  with  the  rugged, 
rocky  Sierra  Madre  Mountains  rising  precipitously 
behind  it,  overlooks  the  whole  valley  of  Los  Angeles, 
Wilmington  and  Santa  Monica,  with  thousands  of 
acres  of  vineyards  and  orange  groves  stretching  away 
before  it  to  the  sea.  The  grounds  about  the  hotel  are 
beautifully  laid  out,  with  lawns,  flower-beds,  shrub- 
bery, fountains,  etc.  With  fifty  acres  of  orange  trees, 
there  are  many  other  fruits,  —  lemons,  olives,  dates, 
limes,  figs,  peaches,  pears,  apricots,  pomegranates. 
The  last  are  just  in  blossom,  and  the  rich  vermilion 
tint  of  the  petals  against  the  dark  glossy  leaves  is  very 
beautiful.  We  are  given  full  permission  to  pluck  and 
eat  of  the  fruit  of  the  trees  before  us,  and  not  one  of 
the  trees  of  the  garden  is  forbidden  to  these  sons  and 
daughters  of  Eve.  It  is  wonderful  how  elastic  the 
human  stomach  sometimes  becomes.  There  can  be 
no  better  conditions  for  testing  its  capacity  than  such 
as  environ  us,  and  to  appreciate  the  full  deliciousness 
of  ripe  oranges  one  must  pluck  and  eat  as  we  did. 

The  vineyard  at  Sierra  Madre,  over  fifty  acres  in 
extent,  has  been  recently  planted  ;  indeed,  only  a  few 


ORANGE    GROVES    AND    VINEYARDS.  8 1 

years  ago  the  whole  place  now  so  fruitful  was  a  sage- 
bush  desert,  but  the  facilities  for  irrigation  are  unsur- 
passed, water  being  abundantly  obtained  from  the 
canon  in  the  mountains  near,  and  stored  in  a  large 
reservoir  a  half-mile  back  of  the  house.  In  all  the 
vineyards  the  vines  are  cut  back  each  year  to  about  a 
foot  and  a  half  in  height,  so  that  they  grow  without 
support  and  are  dwarf  trees  rather  than  vines.  The 
average  annual  product  amounts  to  a  dollar  a  vine. 

Leaving  Sierra  Madre  Villa  we  soon  approached 
the  possessions  of  L.  J.  Rose,  through  whose  farm  of 
twenty-three  hundred  acres  our  road  extends  a  long 
distance.  Mr.  Rose  is  well  known  to  horsemen  as  a 
breeder  of  fast  trotters,  and  is  the  owner  of  the  famous 
Sultan,  the  sire  of  Sweetheart  and  Eva.  He  has  now 
one  hundred  and  fifteen  horses  and  colts,  mostly  colts 
from  one  to  three  years  of  age,  and  we  saw  quite  a 
number  of  them  feeding  in  the  pasture.  His  best 
ones,  however,  were  in  the  stables,  and  were  cheer- 
fully exhibited  to  our  party  when  we  arrived  there. 
Mr.  Rose  has  nine  hundred  and  eighty  acres  of  vine- 
yard,—  many  of  the  vines  being  four  to  six  inches  in 
diameter,  —  and  two  hundred  acres  of  orange  trees. 
There  are  eighty  trees  to  the  acre,  or  sixteen  thousand 
in  all.  These  trees  are  older  than  those  at  Sierra 
Madre,  and  their  fruit,  if  possible,  more  delicious. 
When  Mr.  Rose  came  here  twenty  years  ago  he  was 
worth  about  two  thousand  dollars.  The  little  adobe 
house  (not  much  larger  than  the  box-stall  where  Sul- 


82  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

tan  is  quartered),  in  which  Mr.  Rose  and  wife  lived 
when  they  first  came  here,  still  stands  and  is  carefully 
preserved  by  its  owner.  Mr.  Rose  is  of  the  firm  of 
Stern  &  Rose,  wine  manufacturers,  and  a  visit  to  the 
winerooms  was  included  in  our  trip. 

San  Gabriel  is  nine  miles  southwestward  from  Los 
Angeles.  Here  was  the  old  San  Gabriel  mission, 
established  in  1771,  and  the  old  adobe  mission  church 
still  stands.  The  first  orange  grove  ever  planted  in 
California  is  near  here.  The  ride  homeward  is  over 
a  different  road  from  that  of  the  morning,  but  is 
scarcely  less  pleasant.  We  pass  on  our  way  a  vineyard 
of  fifteen  hundred  acres  but  recently  planted,  and 
many  pleasant-looking  homes  with  lovely  surround- 
ings greet  the  eye.  The  hills  are  beautiful  in  the 
afternoon  light.  On  some  of  them  flocks  of  sheep 
are  feeding,  attended  by  a  shepherd.  Attached  to 
one  shepherd  dog  was  a  coyote,  which  was  being 
trained  to  watch  sheep.  It  is  said  the  coyotes  are 
equal  to  the  best  dogs  for  this  purpose  when  well 
trained.  Such  a  lovely  drive  could  not  be  other  than 
enjoyable  even  if  taken  alone,  but  when  in  company 
with  a  big  carriage  full  of  people  determined  upon 
being  as  merry  and  happy  as  possible,  it  lacked  no 
element  of  completeness,  and  I  realized  as  we  alighted 
in  Los  Angeles  that  the  sun  was  setting  upon  one  of 
the  most  delightful  days  I  had  ever  known. 

Santa  Monica  is  a  noted  beach  resort,  eighteen 
miles  from  Los  Angeles,  by  the  Los  Angeles  &  Inde- 
pendence Railroad ;  and  here  we  obtained  our  first 


SANTA    MONICA.  83 

view  of  the  blue  Pacific,  and  realized  that  we  had 
indeed  crossed  the  continent.  The  beach  is  one  of 
the  finest  on  the  Pacific  coast.  It  is  almost  perfectly 
straight  for  about  a  mile,  then  makes  a  regular  curve 
at  either  end.  There  is  a  high,  precipitous  bluff 
overhanging  the  beach,  which  is  reached  by  a  long 
flight  of  steps.  On  the  bluff  the  hotels  and  residences 
are  located  on  a  straight  street  with  grassy  borders, 
shaded  by  eucalyptus  trees,  and  commanding  an 
expansive  view  of  the  ocean.  The  surf-bathing  is 
excellent  and  is  indulged  in  at  all  seasons  of  the  year. 
It  is  a  delightful  .place  for  those  who  seek  rest  and 
recreation  by  the  "sounding  sea."  This  is  a  new 
country  and  there  are  no  mythical  old  legends  of 
mermaids  and  sea-serpents,  or  other  strange  and 
romantic  tales  to  beguile  the  idle  hours ;  but  it  is 
probable  that  sirens  sometimes  haunt  these  shores  to 
lure  wandering  tourists,  as  on  this  theory  only  can  it  be 
explained  why  one  of  the  most  punctual  and  practical 
men  of  the  Raymond  party  should  go  back  to  "  take 
another  look  at  the  water,"  and  look  so  long  as  to 
"get  left." 

Evidences  that  we  are  on  the  Pacific  coast  are  the 
pigtail  and  slant  eyes  and  flowing  sleeves  of  John 
Chinaman,  who  is  met  everywhere  upon  the  streets 
in  Los  Angeles,  or  performing  servant's  duties  about 
the  hotels  and  dwellings.  We  take  a  walk  through 
the  unsavory  Chinese  quarter,  but  reserve  our  investi- 
gation of  Oriental  interiors  till  we-  arrive  in  San 
Francisco. 


84  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

It  is  four  hundred  and  eighty-two  miles  from  Los 
Angeles  to  San  Francisco  by  the  Southern  Pacific 
road,  and  about  three  hundred  miles  to  Madera, 
where  the  stage  route  to  the  Yosemite  Valley  begins. 
The  Yosemite  trip  is  not  included  in  our  regular 
excursion,  though  ample  time  is  arranged  for  it,  and 
about  forty  of  the  party  have  decided  to  make  it. 
The  stages  cannot  take  us  all  at  once,  and  so  one 
section  went  forward  yesterday  and  the  rest  of  us 
start  to-night. 

We  leave  this  beautiful  "city  of  the  angels  "  with 
many  happy  memories,  which  hereafter  it  will  delight 
us  to  recall,  and  I  shall  ever  rejoice  that  I  know  — 

"  The  land  where  the  lemon  trees  bloom, 
Where  the  gold  orange  grows  in  the  deep  thicket's  gloom." 


CHAPTER   IX. 

THE  YO  SEMITE  VALLEY. 

The  Southern  Pacific  Railroad,  in  crossing  the 
mountains  between  the  Los  Angeles  and  San  Joaquin 
valleys,  has  a  very  difficult  course.  It  makes  zigzags 
and  loops,  winding  around  the  mountain  sides, 
plunges  through  seventeen  dark  tunnels,  one  of  which 
is  more  than  a  mile  in  length,  ascends  and  descends 
steep  grades,  pushes  its  way  through  sand-hills,  and 
is  liable  to  frequent  obstructions  in  the  way  of 
land-slides.  It  was  after  sunset  of  May  27  when  we 
left  Los  Angeles,  and  a  large  portion  of  this  route 
was  traversed  in  the  night.  It  was  just  daybreak  when 
we  reached  the  famous  Tehachapi  loop.  At  this  loop 
the  track  actually  crosses  itself,  there  being  a  dif- 
ference of  seventy-eight  feet  in  the  grade  where  the 
tracks  cross.  An  hour  later  we  arrived  at  the  tunnel, 
at  the  farther  extremity  of  which  was  the  land-slide 
which  had  delayed  the  train  for  several  days,  as  all 
passengers  and  baggage  had  to  be  transferred  to  a 
train  upon  the  other  side.  Few  of  us  will  soon  forget 
our  experience  in  passing  through  that  tunnel,  where 
we  had  to  feel  our  way  through  the  intense  darkness, 
without  a  glimmer  of  light  to  guide  our  devious  steps. 
Pallid  faces  emerged  from  the  Cimmerian  passage, 


86  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

and  tremulous  nerves  evinced  the  severity  of  the 
strain.  After  leaving  the  tunnels  and  the  mountains 
our  route  was  through  a  pleasant  country,  the  grassy 
hillsides  dotted  with  beautiful  oak  trees,  looking 
almost  like  orchards  in  the  distance,  the  wayside 
bordered  with  many  varieties  of  lovely  wild  flowers, — 
on  through  the  broad  and  fertile  San  Joaquin  valley, 
arriving  at  Madera  about  3  p.  M.,  where  we  remained 
for  the  night. 

The  sun  had  not  yet  shown  himself  above  the 
mountain-tops  when  the  stages  drove  up  to  the  door 
next  morning.  Eager  with  anticipation  we  took 
places  for  a  ride  of  ninety  miles  over  the  mountains 
to  see  the  world's  greatest  wonder.  Fortunate  in 
having  a  seat  on  the  box  with  the  driver,  there  was  a 
delightful  exhilaration  attending  this  ride  in  the  early 
morning  hour,  while  the  daylight  struggled  with  and 
finally  conquered  the  night,  and  the  roseate  tints  in 
the  eastern  sky  vanished  in  the  glory  of  the  full-orbed 
King  of  Day. 

Our  attention  was  early  attracted  to  a  V-shaped 
flume  or  sluiceway,  supported  on  trestles,  through 
which  flowed  a  stream  of  water.  This  flume  is  fifty- 
eight  miles  long,  extending  up  into  the  mountain 
forests  where  a  saw-mill  is  in  operation,  and  the 
lumber  is  floated  down  this  sluiceway  to  the  railroad 
at  Madera.  About  five  miles  from  Madera  our  road 
enters  a  cattle  ranche  of  fifty-six  thousand  acres, 
owned  by  an  English  gentleman,  and  it  was  nearly 


A    STAGE    RIDE.  87 

two  hours  before  we  passed  through  the  gate  on   the 
farther  side.     The  road  is  good  and  the  ascent  very 
gradual    till   we   arrive   at    Coarse    Gold,  —  a   place 
pleasanter  than  its  name, — where  we  dine.     Large 
flocks  of  sheep  (they  speak   of  ' '  bands ' '    of  cattle 
and  sheep  and    horses    here)    are    feeding    on    the 
hill-sides ;  oak  trees  in  great  variety,  the  buckeye  full 
of  blossoms   resembling  the    horse-chestnut    bloom t 
the  greasewood  tree  with  its  rich  yellow  flowers  formed 
like  a  wild    rose,    the   manzanita   with   its   crooked 
branches    covered   with   smooth,    mahogany-colored 
bark  in  striking  contrast  to  its  pale  green  leaves  and 
delicate  pink  blossoms,  the  mountain  lilac,  and  many 
other  shrubs  and  thick  chaparral  covered  with  fragrant 
flowers,  loading  the  air  with  perfume,  are  on  either 
hand  as  we  make  our  way  over  the   foot-hills  in   the 
early  afternoon.     For  the  first  time  in   our  journey 
we  meet  with  an  abundance  of  animal  life,  —  wood- 
peckers innumerable  with  their   beautiful   plumage, 
quail  hopping  along  the  road  in  front  of  our  horses 
or  pushing  for  cover,  turtle-doves  in  pairs  gracefully 
skipping  before  us,  ground  squirrels  and  gray  squirrels 
darting  around  rocks  or  trees.     All    these   were    so 
common  that  they  soon  ceased  to  attract  remark  or 
attention,  and  once  a  beautiful  deer  was  seen  running 
along  the  crest  of  a  hill.     Robins  and   many  other 
song  birds  were  also  seen  and  heard.     We  observed 
many  trees  with  the  bark  completely  perforated  with 
holes   from    a   half  to    three-fourths   of  an    inch   in 


88  A    VACATION    EXCURSION.     , 

diameter.  These,  we  were  told,  were  made  by  the 
woodpeckers  for  the  storage  of  acorns.  A  topic  of 
much  interest  was  the  robbery  of  a  stage  on  this  road 
by  foot-pads  some  ten  days  previous ;  and  the  usual 
brave  remarks  were  uttered  about  what  we  would  do 
or  wouldn't  do  under  similar  circumstances,  and  the 
attempt  to  scare  each  other  with  the  terrible  words 
' '  road  agents ' '  when  a  peaceful  Indian  was  seen 
galloping  before  us,  or  a  gang  of  Chinamen  em- 
ployed in  repairing  the  road  plodded  along,  created 
considerable  mirth. 

After  passing  Fresno  Flat,  having  crossed  the  first 
range  of  foot-hills,  we  began  to  enter  a  timbered 
country.  "  What  tall  pines!  "  we  exclaimed.  "  You 
will  think  those  are  only  walking-sticks  before  long," 
our  driver  replied.  We  supposed  he  had  reference  to 
the  "Big  Trees,"  —the  Sequoia  Gigantea  of  the 
Mariposa  Grove, — but  as  we  penetrated  farther  into 
the  forest,  the  pines  and  spruces  and  cedars  became 
of  such  enormous  size  that  the  term  "  walking-sticks  " 
applied  to  the  others  seemed  scarcely  too  exagger- 
ated in  comparison.  Sugar  and  yellow  pines  and 
Douglas  spruces  from  fifteen  to  twenty-five  feet  in  cir- 
cumference and  two  hundred  and  fifty  feet  tall  were 
frequent,  and  those  of  larger  size  were  not  uncommon. 
At  a  watering  station  some  of  our  party  measured  a 
pine  twenty-seven  feet  in  circumference,  and  it  was  by 
no  means  the  largest  we  saw.  For  more  than  forty 
miles  our  road  wound  around  the  mountain  sides 


A    STAGE   RIDE.  89 

through  this  magnificent  forest.  It  was  a  grand,  a 
beautiful  sight,  those  tall,  majestic  columns  towering 
more  than  a  hundred  feet  before  a  branch  appeared, 
while  clinging  to  almost  every  trunk  and  covering 
every  dead  branch  and  limb  and  twig  was  a  beautiful 
yellow-green  moss  such  as  I  have  never  seen  anywhere 
else.  But  there  were  many  charred  and  blackened 
trunks,  where  fires  had  wrought  their  work  of 
ruin,  and  it  was  saddening  to  see  so  many  of  these 
forest  monarchs  thus  dethroned.  There  is  very  little 
undergrowth  in  these  mountain  forests,  but  plenty 
of  room  for  the  lovely  flowers  which  grow  by  the 
wayside. 

The  road  through  the  forest  was  very  muddy  and 
the  wheels  not  infrequently  would  sink  in  to  the  hub, 
the  stage  apparently  on  the  point  of  overturning ; 
when  this  happened  on  the  edge  of  a  precipice  or 
rounding  a  "hairpin  curve"  it  was  somewhat  excit- 
ing. But  we  were  a  "merrie  companie,"  and  if  I 
had  to  grasp  the  back  of  my  seat  till  my  muscles  were 
sore  to  keep  from  being  thrown  upon  the  horses,  and 
if  those  inside  were  jolted  till  their  heads  struck  the 
carriage,  what  mattered  it?  It  was  only  another 
experience  to  be  added  to  our  varied  store,  and  a 
stimulus  for  fun  and  repartee.  I  confess,  though, 
there  was  a  little  holding  of  breath  when  we  crossed 
a  stream  so  deep  and  swift  that  the  horses  were  almost 
carried  from  their  feet.  We  traveled  sixty-six  miles 
the  first  day,  arriving  at  the  Wahwonah  (formerly 

7 


9<D  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Clark's)  just  after  dark.  The  good  fare  and  excellent 
beds  found  here  were  very  thoroughly  appreciated, 
and  we  arose  next  morning  fully  refreshed  for  the 
second  day's  journey.  If  the  road  had  not  been 
muddy  we  should  have  reached  the  Valley  about 
noon,  but  it  was  3  p.  M.  when  we  arrived  there. 

What  pen  shall  fitly  describe  the  first  view  of  the 
Valley,  that  from  Inspiration  Point !  Surely  none 
but  an  inspired  one  should  attempt  to  depict  the 
awful  majesty  of  El  Capitan,  towering  in  sublime 
massiveness  3,300  feet  above  the  valley  on  the  left,  a 
perpendicular  wall  of  solid  granite  ;  or  the  wondrous 
beauty  of  Pohono  [Spirit  of  the  Evil  Wind],  the 
Bridal  Vail,  on  the  right,  falling  over  a  precipice  940 
feet,  swaying  in  the  wind,  —  a  misty  film  more  beau- 
tiful than  ever  decked  the  fairest  bride;  or  the 
grandeur  of  the  Cathedral  Spires,  reaching  heaven- 
ward 2,660  feet ;  or  the  lofty  Domes  in  their  perfect 
symmetry  beyond,  on  either  hand ;  or  the  snow- 
crowned  Cloud's  Rest  in  the  distance,  6,150  feet 
above  the  valley  and  10,210  feet  above  the  sea;  or 
the  loveliness  of  the  Merced  river,  meandering 
through  the  valley,  between  its  banks  of  vivid  green. 
Reverently  we  gaze  upon  the  picture  till  the  film 
creeps  into  our  eyes  ;  then  —  our  horses  are  turned  to 
go  down  the  mountain;  a  thunder-shower  comes  down 
upon  us,  umbrellas  hide  the  Bridal  Vail  as  we  pass  it, 
and,  oblivious  of  the  scenery,  wet  and  hungry,  we 
are  landed  at  Cook's  Hotel.  But  no,  we  cannot 


THE    YO    SEMITE.  9! 

enter  yet.  There  is  a  roar  as  of  a  cannonade  in  our 
ears,  and  before  us,  descending  from  Eagle  Cliff 
2,634  feet,  in  three  gigantic  leaps,  is  Yo  Semite,  the 
Big  Grizzly  Bear,  and  we  pause  almost  spell-bound. 
The  uppermost  of  these  falls  has  a  sheer  descent  of 
i, 600  feet,  the  second,  a  winding  cataract,  of  534 
feet,  and  the  last  a  straight  fall  of  over  500  feet. 
The  stream  is  said  to  be  thirty  feet  in  width  where  it 
falls  over  the  precipice,  though  its  great  height  makes 
it  appear  much  narrower ;  but  it  widens  out  toward 
the  bottom  and  the  upper  fall  is  often  swayed  by  the 
wind  hundreds  of  feet  each  way.  This  vibration  of 
the  water  by  the  pressure  of  the  wind  is  said  to  be 
peculiar  to  the  Yo  Semite  and  Bridal  Vail  falls. 

There  are  three  hotels  in  the  Valley,  and  it  would 
be  impossible  to  locate  one  in  any  portion  of  it 
that  would  not  command  a  view  of  some  point  of 
surpassing  interest,  but  it  seems  to  me  that  this  of 
Cook's  has  the  most  favored  site.  Directly  opposite 
is  the  Yo  Semite  Fall,  and,  as  we  sit  in  the  piazza,  we 
can  follow  the  whole  northern  wall  of  the  gorge  from 
El  Capitan  past  the  Three  Brothers,  Eagle  Cliff,  the 
fall,  and  along  to  the  North  Dome,  —  upon  which  now 
rests  a  snowy  cross  as  well  defined  as  that  in  Moran's 
great  painting  of  the  Mount  of  the  Holy  Cross  — 
across  the  valley  to  the  South  or  Half  Dome,  and 
beyond  to  Cloud's  Rest  crowned  with  snow.  A  short 
distance  back  of  the  hotel  stands  the  Sentinel,  a  per- 
pendicular mass  of  granite  tapering  off  into  a  peak 


92  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

three  thousand  and  forty-three  feet  above  the  valley, 
I  do  not  think  anything  impressed  me  more  than  this 
matchless  "Loya"  or  watch-tower,  as  the  Indians 
named  it,  towering  skyward  in  its  awful  grandeur. 
Not  twenty  feet  from  the  rear  of  the  house  is  one  of 
those  magnificent  pines,  twenty-four  feet  in  circum- 
ference and  from  two  hundred  to  two  hundred  and 
fifty  feet  in  height.  How  puny  and  small  seem  com- 
mon things  amid  these  gigantic  creations  ! 

After  dining,  the  clouds  having  cleared  away,  I 
could  not  resist  the  temptation,  in  spite  of  fatigue,  of 
a  walk,  some  two  miles,  to  the  foot  of  the  Yo  Semite 
Fall.  Here  over  the  rocks,  close  up  into  the  spray  I 
clambered,  while  a  roar  as  of  artillery  was  in  my  ears, 
and  received  a  shower-bath  from  waters  born  in  the 
eternal  snows  and  poured  from  a  reservoir  nearly 
three  thousand  feet  above  my  head. 

Early  next  morning  I  awoke  to  the  musical  thunder 
of  the  "Big  Grizzly.  "  No  lingering  in  bed  while 
that  grand  reveille  is  sounding  !  There  is  something 
very  peculiar  about  the  noise  made  by  this  fall.  It  is 
not  continuous  like  the  roar  of  Niagara,  but  inter- 
mittent, and  sounds  more  like  a  cannonade  than  any- 
thing I  know.  Sometimes  there  will  be  a  boom  as  of 
a  single  gun,  and  then  after  a  pause  a  wrhole  battery 
will  thunder  forth.  I  have  heard  no  satisfactory 
explanation  of  this  peculiarity. 


THE    YO    SEMITE.  93 

After  breakfast  most  of  us  prepared  for  the  ascent 
of  the  Nevada  Trail.  Horses  and  mules  were  soon 
mounted,  and  with  trusty  guides  we  started  forth, 
some  who  had  never  been  in  saddle  before  with  fear 
and  trembling,  but  confidence  was  soon  gained.  We 
were  not  a  picturesque  group,  but  a  very  happy  one. 
The  course  is  some  two  or  three  miles  through  the 
valley  before  we  begin  the  ascent,  new  wonders  being 
constantly  brought  into  view :  the  Buttermilk  Fall, 
a  small  stream,  pours  down  from  the  Sentinel  three 
thousand  feet ;  the  jagged  outline  of  Glacier  Point 
comes  into  sight;  the  Half  Dome  [Tissaack,  "  God- 
dess of  the  Valley,  "]  appears  in  better  outline,  and 
Washington's  Column,  projecting  from  the  North 
Dome  in  symmetrical  proportions,  is  clearly  seen. 
The  trail  up  the  mountain  keeps  in  sight  the  Merced 
river  most  of  the  way  till  we  reach  the  Vernal  Fall. 
This  fall  is  three  hundred  and  fifty  feet  over  a  smooth 
precipice,  carrying  the  whole  volume  of  the  river, 
and  is  by  many  regarded  as  the  most  beautiful  of  all 
in  the  valley.  Scarcely  less  beautiful,  and  more  grand, 
is  the  cataract  below,  where  the  rushing  torrent  foams 
and  seethes  among  the  rocks  in  its  mad  descent.  The 
first  part  of  the  ascent  is  gradual,  but  at  length  we 
begin  to  zigzag  around  the  precipitous  sides  of  the 
mountain,  with  curves  so  short  there  is  barely  room 
for  our  animals  to  turn,  and  a  trail  so  narrow  there 
is  scarcely  an  inch  between  us  and  destruction, 
and  our  horses  will  step  upon  the  very  outermost 


94  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

verge  of  the  path.  The  Cap  of  Liberty  back  of 
Tissaack,  which,  when  first  seen,  did  not  appear 
very  prominent,  now  looms  up  grandly, 'increasing 
in  proportions  as  we  approach  it,  and,  though 
obscured  from  view  in  the  valley  by  the  Half  Dome 
which  towers  one  thousand  nine  hundred  feet  above 
it,  is  still  three  thousand  one  hundred  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  valley,  a  huge,  bare  mass  of  gran- 
ite, smoothed  and  rounded  into  the  almost  perfect 
semblance  of  the  conventional  liberty  cap.  Having 
attained  our  highest  point  we  descend  a  little  distance, 
till  we  cross  the  river  just  before  reaching  Snow's,  a 
hotel  at  the  foot  of  Nevada  Fall.  This  fall  is  seven 
hundred  feet,  fro.m  the  Little  Yo  Semite  valley  above, 
and  as  the  river  is  fed  from  the  perpetual  snows  of  the 
high  Sierras  it  always  carries  a  large  volume  of  water, 
while  the  falls  on  other  streams  are  nearly  dried  up 
later  in  the  season.  The  Nevada  Fall  veers  a  little 
from  a  straight  course  and  broadens  out  very  much  at 
the  bottom,  and  the  spray  is  carried  a  long  distance. 
On  the  whole,  I  think  this  fall  not  surpassed  in  beauty 
by  any  in  the  Valley.  There  is  a  trail  from  Snow's 
to  the  top  of  the  fall,  where  the  view  is  said  to  be 
very  grand,  but  only  a  few  of  our  party  made  the 
ascent.  From  Snow's  we  get  fine  views  of  the  Sen- 
tinel Dome,  Glacier  Point,  South  Dome  and  Liberty 
Cap,  but  not  a  general  view  of  the  Valley. 

The  old  quotation,  "  facilts  descensus,  "  will  hardly 
apply  to  the  path  down  the  mountain.     Some  who 


THE    YO    SEMITE.  95 

rode  up  without  fear  find  their  nerves  a  little  tremu- 
lous as  they  wind  around  the  fearful  precipices,  and 
look  down  the  awful  depths,  and  think  how  slight  a 
misstep  on  the  part  of  their  horses  would  hurl  them 
to  instant  destruction.  No  accident  occurs,  however, 
and  we  all  arrive  safely  at  our  hotel,  tired,  yet  rich  in 
a  new  experience,  and  with  ineffaceable  impressions 
upon  our  memories  of  the  grandeur  and  beauty  it  has 
been  permitted  us  to  behold. 

The  following  morning  ushered  in  a  beautiful  sum- 
mer Sabbath,  a  welcome  day  of  rest  to  most.  No 
need  of  temple  reared  by  human  hands  in  which  to 
worship  here.  The  Power  that  rent  asunder  the  ever- 
lasting rocks  and  hollowed  out  this  cradle  in  the  heart 
of  the  Sierras  needs  here  no  priest  for  His  inter- 
preter. His  voice  is  heard  in  the  thunders  of  Yo 
Semite,  the  snowy  cross  glitters  upon  the  North  Dome, 
El  Capitan  and  Tissaack  utter  forth  His  majesty  and 
the  beautiful  Merced  river  His  mercy  and  peace. 

Monday  morning  was  an  eventful  one  —  I  saw  the 
sun  rise  four  times;  once  from  my  bedroom  window, 
and  three  times  in  Mirror  Lake.  The  lake  is  two  and 
a  half  miles  from  the  hotel,  and  after  an  early  break- 
fast we  drove  thither.  Our  road  is  up  the  valley 
toward  the  east,  crossing  the  river,  past  the  "Royal 
Arches ' '  on  the  south  wall  of  the  base  of  the  North 
Dome.  These  are  perfect  arches  formed  by  cleavage 
in  the  solid  rock,  and  although  they  seem  at  that 
great  height  to  project  but  a  few  inches,  they  proba- 
bly overhang  the  rock  beneath  not  less  than  fifty  feet. 


96  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Mirror  Lake  is  a  small  sheet  of  water,  its  southern 
bank  being  the  perpendicular  wall  of  Tissaack,  the 
Half  Dome.  Beyond  Tissaack  is  Cloud's  Rest,  and 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  lake  is  Mt.  Watkins. 
These  are  all  reflected  in  the  glassy  surface  of  the  lake 
as  perfectly  as  in  a  mirror,  and  every  bush  and  twig 
on  the  banks,  while  — 

"In  the  crystal  deeps,  inverted, 
Swings  a  picture  of  the  sky.  " 

The  sun  had  been  up  more  than  two  hours  in  the 
valley,  but  was  still  hidden  from  sight  here  behind 
the  jagged  edges  of  the  cliff.  Instructed  by  our 
guide  as  to  position,  we  looked  to  see  the  day-god 
make  his  appearance,  not  above  the  mountain  tops  in 
the  sky,  but  in  the  water  at  our  feet.  We  had  looked 
but  a  few  minutes  when  the  most  beautiful  rainbow 
colors  appeared,  then  a  bright  speck  of  light  which 
became  a  star  with  dazzling  rays,  then  a  brilliant 
crescent,  and  finally  the  full  disc  of  the  sun  emerged 
from  the  mountain  line  in  the  water.  The  effect  was 
wondrously  beautiful,  almost  beyond  the  power  of 
imagination  to  conceive.  We  changed  our  position 
"to  where  the  sun  was  'hidden  by  a  higher  point,  and 
the  phenomenon  was  repeated,  and  to  still  another 
point,  and  for  the  third  time  I  saw  the  sun  rise  in  the 
bosom  of  the  lake. 

Returning  to  our  hotel,  we  join  the  party  who  are 
already  mounting  for  the  ascent  of  the  Glacier  Point 


THE    YO    SEMITE.  97 

trail.  This  trail  starts  at  the  base  of  Sentinel  Rock, 
just  back  of  the  hotel,  and  commences  the  ascent  at 
once.  It  is  for  the  most  part  steeper  than  the  Nevada 
trail,  and  the  turns  are  shorter,  but  the  route  com- 
mands the  most  magnificent  views  of  the  Valley  at 
every  point.  We  are  directly  opposite  the  Yo  Semite 
fall,  and  ever  as  we  ascend  higher  and  higher  the  fall 
increases  in  grandeur,  until  at  length  we  are  above 
and  looking  down  upon  it.  Union  Point  is  the  half- 
way place,  where  we  dismount  and  rest  our  horses. 
Just  beneath  us,  on  a  projecting  shelf  of  rock  is 
Agassiz's  Column,  a  tall  tower  of  rocks  piled  evenly 
one  upon  another.  We  stand  upon  the  edge  of  the 
precipice  and,  clinging  to  a  boulder,  look  down  into 
the  valley  below.  The  lovely  Merced,  like  a  glassy 
ribbon,  meanders  between  its  green  banks,  men  and 
horses  looking  like  Lilliputians  are  seen  moving  along 
the  road,  the  tall  trees  have  become  dwarfs,  the  build- 
ings diminutive  huts.  But  oh,  how  grand  the  view 
about  and  beyond  us  !  The  stupendous  walls  of  El 
Capitan  become  more  massive,  the  Three  Brothers  rear 
their  giant  heads  more  loftily,  the  Cathedral  spires  tower 
heavenward  with  more  exalted  aim,  the  snowy  fall 
plunges  downward  more  impetuously  before  us,  the 
Domes  rear  their  granite  spheres  more  symmetrically, 
new  mountains  come  into  view  beyond  Cloud's  Rest, 
a  bright  blue  sky  hovers  over  all,  and  we  are  sur- 
rounded by  a  clear,  transparent  atmosphere,  which  it 
is  a  joy  to  breathe.  But,  up  and  away  !  There  are 
loftier  heights  and  grander  views  before  us. 


98  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

For  quite  a  distance  now  our  path  makes  a  gradual 
ascent  without  turns,  then  we  begin  to  wind  again 
and  the  curves  become  shorter  and  the  trail  steeper 
than  before,  till  we  who  are  in  advance  can  look  down 
upon  our  companions  beneath  in  a  dozen  different 
paths  going  alternately  in  opposite  directions.  The 
end  of  our  trail,  Glacier  Point,  is  at  last  reached  and 
all  rush  to  the  edge  of  the  precipice.  Can  one  realize 
what  it  is  to  look  straight  down  three  thousand  two 
hundred  feet  ?  Lean  over  and  drop  a  pebble  from 
your  hand.  It  will  not  stop  until  it  has  reached  the 
bottom.  No  gradual  slope  to  this  height,  but  the  edge 
of  the  cliff  really  overhangs  the  base.  From  below, 
the  top  of  this  massive  wall  of  Glacier  Point  seems 
to  be  surmounted  by  sharp  points  and  broken,  jagged 
edges.  We  find  on  arriving  at  the  summit  that  these 
points  and  broken  lines  are  formed  by  boulders  and 
fragments  of  rock  along  the  edge  of  the  precipice. 

Apropos  of  this,  I  must  tell  my  readers  how  Mr. 
McAuley,  who  keeps  the  hotel  at  Glacier  Point,  won 
his  wife.  He  took  her  to  the  edge  of  this  cliff  to  look 
below.  Clinging  to  a  boulder  she  gazed  fearfully 
downward,  then  drawing  back  she  exclaimed,  "  Oh, 
it  is  grand,  but  it  frightens  me!  "  "  If  you  don't 
say  you  will  marry  me  I  will  push  you  off  and  throw 
myself  after  you,  "  he  replied.  "  I  vill !  I  vill  !  " 
she  exclaimed,  and  rushed  to  his  arms.  This  was 
rather  a  heroic  method  of  wooing,  but  may  serve  as 
a  hint  to  discouraged  swains  who  do  not  find  persua- 
sion effectual. 


THE    YO    SEMITE.  99 

We  can  get  a  better  general  idea  of  the  Yo  Semite 
Valley  from  Glacier  Point  than  from  anywhere  else. 
The  general  course  of  the  Sierra  Nevadas  is  north  and 
south,  but  this  valley  is  a  transverse  opening  six  miles 
in  length  and  less  than  an  average  mile  in  width, 
extending  in  a  northeasterly  and  southwesterly  direc- 
tion. The  bottom  of  the  valley  is  four  thousand  feet 
above  the  level  of  the  sea,  and  these  vertical  walls 
and  mountains  surrounding  it  rise  from  three  thou- 
sand to  four  thousand  feet  above  it.  To  the  eastward 
we  look  across  to  the  Nevada  Fall  and  the  Cap  of 
Liberty,  toMt.  Starr  King  beyond,  one  hundred  feet 
higher  than  the  South  Dome,  and  to  other  moun- 
tains not  previously  seen.  The  view  from  Union 
Point  is  here  broadened  out  and  extended.  Below, 
the  Merced  river  looks  like  a  silver  thread,  and  we 
seem  to  be  looking  as  through  the  small  end  of  a 
telescope  to  distant  objects.  What  we  saw  on  Sat- 
urday from  Snow's  bears  no  comparison  to  the  view 
here.  If  a  visitor  could  spend  but  one  day  in  the 
Yo  Semite,  that  day  should  be  given  to  the  Glacier 
Point  Trail. 

But  some  of  us  are  not  quite  satisfied.  By  a  trail 
a  mile  and  a  half  farther  up  is  reached  the  Sentinel 
Dome,  four  thousand  one  hundred  and  twenty-five 
feet  above  the  valley,  eight  thousand  one  hundred 
and  eighty-five  feet  above  the  sea.  The  trail,  which 
is  not  difficult  on  horseback  later  in  the  season,  is 
now  covered  with  snow  for  the  whole  distance  at  a 
depth  of  from  three  feet  to  any  depth  beyond. 


100  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

We  learn  that  it  is  possible  to  make  the  ascent, 
however,  as  two  gentlemen  have  already  been  to 
the  summit  this  season.  A  half-dozen  of  us  decide 
to  attempt  it,  and  we  are  joined  by  two  gentlemen 
not  of  our  party  who  came  to  Glacier  Point  with 
us.  On  we  go,  over  the  snow,  pausing  often  to 
take  breath, — for  the  heart-beats  come  quickly  in 
this  rare  atmosphere  and  the  blood  rushes  to  the 
surface  till  every  vessel  seems  ready  to  burst,  — 
slumping  often  in  the  soft  snow,  till  shoes  and 
clothing  are  saturated,  but  we  do  not  falter,  and 
when  at  last  we  stand  upon  the  bare  gray  summit 
and  exclaim,  "  Veni,  vidi,  vici"  all  fatigue  is 
forgotten  in  the  glorious  exaltation  with  which  the 
scene  inspires  us.  Never  again  may  I  expect  to 
behold  so  grand,  so  magnificent  a  spectacle.  Snow- 
covered  mountains,  peak  beyond  peak,  as  far  as  the 
eye  can  reach,  Starr  King,  Lyell,  Dana,  Hoffman, 
and  others  of  the  high  Sierras  from  ten  thousand  to 
thirteen  thousand  feet  in  height,  while  the  mountains 
surrounding  the  valley,  which  had  hitherto  been 
above  or  on  a  level  with  us,  now  sink,  and  only  the 
Half  Dome  and  Cloud's  Rest  are  higher  than  we. 
The  cradle-like  formation  of  the  valley  is  here  very 
distinct.  The  Sierras  gradually  slope,  with  an 
occasional  projecting  peak,  till  the  walls  of  the 
gorge  are  reached.  Yet  from  this  lofty  summit,  so 
little  does  it  recede  from  the  base,  we  are  still  able 
to  see  portions  of  the  green  carpet  in  the  valley  and 


THE    YO    SEMITE.  IOI 

the  stream  winding  through  it,  and  the  mist  rising 
from  the  Bridal  Vail.  From  a  single  point  we  can 
look  upon  both  the  Yo  Semite  and  the  Nevada  falls. 
The  massiveness  of  these  smooth  granite  domes  I 
had  no  conception  of  till  we  reached  this  summit. 
From  below  they  seemed  about  the  size  of  the  dome 
on  the  capitol  at  Washington.  Although  their 
symmetry  is  not  perfect  on  all  sides,  from  some 
points  of  view  they  appear  almost  absolutely  so. 
I  could  not  venture  an  estimate  of  the  diameter  of 
this  Sentinel  Dome  from  where  it  begins  to  assume 
the  spheroidal  form,  but  it  must  be  many  hundred 
feet.  The  Half  Dome  is  a  clean  cut  from  apex  to 
base.  What  has  become  of  the  severed  half  of  the 
mountain  scientists  have  in  vain  tried  to  discover. 
We  never  weary  of  gazing  upon  the  glorious  pano- 
rama before  us,  but  we  cannot  longer  remain  upon 
the  heights.  We  must  descend ;  yet  we  carry  with 
us  a  fadeless  picture,  painted  by  a  Divine  Artist, 
which  will  hang  upon  the  walls  of  our  memories 
forever. 

I  wish  I  were  able  to  tell  something  of  the  history 
of  the  Yo  Semite  Valley  as  I  listened  to  it  from  the 
eloquent  lips  of  Mr.  J.  M.  Hutchings,  the  superin- 
tendent of  the  valley,  who  was  one  of  the  first 
company  of  white  men  (except  some  United  States 
soldiers)  who  visited  it,  and  the  first  to  write  a 
description  of  it.  Of  the  Yo  Semite  Indians  who 
had  their  home  here,  only  thirteen  are  now  living. 


IO2  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Tuesday  morning  we  reluctantly  bade  adieu  to  this 
grandest  of  Nature's  wonders  and  started  on  our 
return  trip.  After  dinner  at  the  Wahwonah,  we 
were  driven  six  miles  to  the  Mariposa  Grove  of  Big 
Trees.  In  the  lower  grove  the  trees  are  scattered 
among  the  pines  and  firs,  and  the  massiveness  of  so 
many  of  these  had  in  a  measure  prepared  us  for  the 
giant  Sequoias.  These  trees  have  been  so  often 
described,  I  forbear  a  repetition  here.  Their  peculiar 
bark  makes  them  conspicuous  when  not  of  large  size, 
and  their  straightt  symmetrical  trunks,  piercing  the 
sky  at  heights  varying  from  two  hundred  to  three 
hundred  feet,  awaken  our  admiring  awe.  The 
largest  tree  we  saw  was  the  "  Grizzly  Giant,"  ninety- 
three  feet  and  seven  inches  in  circumference  at 
the  ground,  and  sixty-four  feet,  three  inches  at  eleven 
feet  above.  It  has  been  much  burned  at  the  base, 
and  must  once  have  measured  much  more  than  this. 
Some  of  the  branches  are  six  feet  in  diameter,  but 
they  are  high  up  and  do  not  appear  so  large.  This 
tree  is  not  so  tall  as  some  of  lesser  size.  Many  of  the 
branches  have  been  broken  off,  and  altogether  the 
Grizzly  presents  a  time-worn  and  battered  appear- 
ance. "  The  Fallen  Monarch  "  gave  us  a  good  idea 
of  the  immense  diameter  of  these  giants,  as  it  lay 
prostrate  on  the  ground.  We  were  much  disap- 
pointed in  not  being  able  to  visit  the  upper  grove, 
which  was  inaccessible  on  account  of  snow.  In  this 
grove  is  the  famous  tree  ' '  Wahwonah ' '  through 


THE    BIG    TREES.  103 

which  the  stage  drives  with  its  load  of  passengers, 
though  it  is  not  so  large  as  the  Grizzly  Giant.  In 
the  upper  grove  there  are  more  trees  of  immense  size, 
and  they  are  less  scattered  among  those  of  other 
species.  This  trip  to  the  Big  Trees  was  the  hardest 
part  of  our  journey,  the  mud  being  of  fabulous  depth 
and  progress  slow  and  wearisome.  It  was  evening 
of  the  following  day  when  we  reached  Madera,  the 
return  journey,  though  lacking  the  charm  of  novelty, 
being  full  of  interest  and  pleasure. 


^CHAPTER   X. 


SAN    FRANCISCO    NOTES. 


WE  joined   the  rest  of   our  party  at    the  Palace 
Hotel  in   San  Francisco  about  noon  July  5. 
This  is  the  largest  hotel   in   the  world,  a  magnificent 
iron   building,    seven  stories  in    height,  with    lofty, 
spacious  rooms,  elegantly  furnished  and  supplied  with 
every  convenience,   except  —  sunlight;    that  has  to 
reach  most  of  the  rooms  diluted,  —  a  condition   of 
things  no  architect  could  provide  against  in  planning 
so  immense  a  structure.     The  building  and  its  fur- 
nishings cost  six  and  a  half  millions  of  dollars.     It 
covers  more  than  two  acres  of  ground,  and  the  dis- 
tance around  it  is  just  a  quarter  of  a  mile.     There  is  a 
promenade  of  one-third  of  a  mile  on  the  roof,  from, 
which  a  fine  view  of  the  city  may  be  obtained.     I 
was  surprised  to  find  that  with  the  exception   of  the 
leading  hotels  and  business  blocks,  which  are  mostly 
constructed  of  iron,   nearly  all  the  buildings  in  the 
city  are  of  wood,  and  they  are  painted  of  a  nearly 
uniform    drab   color.      The  prevalence   of   wooden 
structures  is  doubtless  due  to  the  fear  of  the  instability 
of  brick  in  case  of  earthquakes,   which  are  always 
"liable"  to   occur  on  this  coast.     Among  the  most 


106  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

interesting  features  of  San  Francisco  to  eastern  people 
are  the  cable  street-cars.  Although  we  had  seen 
similar  cars  in  Chicago,  there  they  were  on  level 
ground  and  did  not  have  the  novelty  of  these,  moving 
up  and  down,  with  no  visible  means  of  locomotion, 
over  the  steep  hills  found  on  so  many  streets  in  San 
Francisco.  To  sit  on  the  front  seat  of  one  of  these 
cars  and  ride  down  the  steep  inclines  on  California 
street  seems  more  like  "sliding  down  hill"  on  the 
snow  crust  on  a  frosty  March  morning  in  New  Eng- 
land than  anything  else.  This  California  street, 
which  has  a  great  many  ups  and  downs,  some  of  the 
hills  being  so  steep  that  no  ordinary  vehicle  passes 
over  them,  is  the  favorite  street  of  wealthy  'Friscoans 
and  contains  many  very  elegant  residences,  including 
those  of  Gov.  Stanford,  Crocker,  Flood,  O'Brien, 
Gen.  Colton,  and  other  millionaires.  The  city  has 
as  many  hills  as  ancient  Rome,  but  considerable  of 
the  business  portion  is  built  on  land  reclaimed  from 
the  sea. 

San  Francisco  has,  like  other  cities  of  its  size, 
numerous  public  buildings,  schools,  churches,  theatres, 
museums,  libraries,  etc.,  but  that  which  it  has  unlike 
other  cities  is  of  chief  interest  to  tourists ;  and  what 
more  strange  than  Chinatown  with  its  thirty-five  thou- 
sand almond-eyed  denizens  packed  almost  like  sardines 
in  a  box  !  Thitherward  we  turned  our  steps,  under 
escort  of  a  policeman,  and  visited  stores,  restaurants, 
dwellings,  opium  dens,  pawn  shops,  theatre,  and  Joss- 


CHINATOWN.  107 

house.  We  are  in  pursuit  of  information  and  must 
not  be  fastidious  about  sights  or  smells,  although  the 
Chinaman  is  a  clean  animal  in  his  personal  habits, 
bathing  often.  Everything  the  Chinamen  wear  and 
almost  everything  they  use  and  eat  is  brought  from 
China.  Their  provision  stores  are  a  curiosity.  Dried 
meats  of  all  kinds,  fowls,  hams,  tiny  sausages,  eels, 
dried  vegetables,  cabbages  in  pickle,  cheese  and  cakes 
made  of  beans,  eggs  boiled  hard  and  packed  in  mud, 
dried  oysters,  live  eels  and  turtles  brought  over  in 
tanks,  dried  fruits,  dried  fish,  and  many  other  articles 
"  too  numerous  to  mention,"  as  the  auction  bills  say, 
are  to  be  found  there.  At  a  restaurant  we  saw  some 
of  these  boiled  eggs  cut  up  in  little  bits  ready  for 
the  table.  They  were  almost  black,  and  redolent  of 
something  other  than  ' '  spicy  gales .  from  Araby  the 
blest."  Everything  served  at  the  restaurants  is  cut 
into  small  pieces  suitable  for  being  eaten  with  chop- 
sticks before  being  sent  to  the  table.  A  vegetable 
something  like  an  artichoke,  of  a  sweetish  flavor  and 
about  the  size  of  a  potato  ball,  seemed  to  be  much  in 
'favor.  In  the  better  class  of  restaurants  there  are 
elegant  carvings  and  beautiful  inlaid  furniture,  the 
daintiest  china  cups  and  dishes ;  but  there  is  a  lack 
of  taste  and  harmony,  and  the  costly  chairs  and 
rich  carvings  seem  out  of  place.  And  there  is  such 
an  incongruity,  too,  in  the  use  of  the  lovely  porcelain 
dishes  to  be  seen  amid  the  dingiest  and  most  uncouth 
surroundings,  such  china  as  Yankee  housekeepers 


108  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

reserve  for  extraordinary  occasions,  thinking  its  service 

"  Too  bright  and  good 
For  human  nature's  daily  food." 

The  average  Chinaman  will  live  upon  six  cents' 
worth  of  food  a  day,  and  his  heartiest  meal  is  eaten 
just  before  going  to  bed.  I  was  going  to  write 
retiring,  but  it  occurred  to  me  that  they  don't  retire. 
Their  beds  are  merely  shelves  fastened  against  the 
wall  like  sailors'  bunks,  one  above  another,  with  a 
piece  of  matting  thrown  over  them.  One  room  I 
saw,  not  ten  feet  square,  was  the  dwelling  of  half  a 
dozen  men.  One  man  was  getting  ready  for  his  opium 
smoke,  another  cooking  his  evening  meal  in  the  dim 
passageway  outside.  His  fire  was  in  a  small  sheet-iron 
receptacle,  and  was  fed  by  a  few  splinters,  not  so 
many  as  most  people  would  use  for  kindling  a  single 
•fire,  and  close  over  this  was  a  frying-pan  in  which 
some  sort  of  sausage  meat  was  cooking.  The  cook 
attended  strictly  to  business,  paying  no  regard  to  the 
intrusive  visitors  who  watched  his  operations.  As 
there  were  ho  fire-places  or  chimneys,  the  smoke  had 
given  the  walls  and  ceilings  about  the  complexion  of 
a  coal  mine. 

An  opium  den  isxnot  an  attractive  place.  It  is  no 
"  gilded  saloon,"  with  music  and  dancing  and  bril- 
liant lights  to  lure  the  passer-by ;  but  dark,  dingy, 
hot  and  suffocating,  and  reached  oftentimes  through 
dark  and  devious  passageways  underground.  It  gen- 
erally consists  of  numerous  cells  on  either  side  of  a 


CHINATOWN.  109 

narrow  court,  each  cell  having  two  or  three  tiers  of 
bunks  one  above  another,  just  long  and  wide  enough 
to  accommodate  the  reclining  smoker.  For  an  opium 
"  lay-out  "  are  required,  besides  the  drug,  the  bunk 
on  which  the  devotee  reclines  with  a  plank  for  a  pillow, 
the  pipe  (a  flute-shaped  article  with  the  orifice  in 
which  the  opium  is  placed  near  the  center),  and  a 
small  spirit-lamp.  Here,  reclining  on  his  right  side, 
with  lamp  before  him,  the  smoker  holds  the  opium  on 
the  point  of  a  wire  over  the  flame,  melting  and 
manipulating  it  till  it  attains  the  right  condition  (a 
work  of  several  minutes),  then  places  it  in  the  pipe 
and  draws  one  or  two  whiffs,  then  melts  more  opium 
in  the  flame  and  repeats  the  process  till  the  drug  is  all 
consumed.  A  moderate  smoker  consumes  ten  cents' 
worth  at  a  "  lay-out, ' '  but  much  more  is  required  by 
those  who  smoke  till  intoxicated.  It  will  be  seen  that 
much  time,  labor  and  patience  are  required  for  a  man 
to  get  drunk  by  opium  smoking,  and  the  vileness  of 
his  condition  is  enhanced  by  the  villainous  atmos- 
phere which  surrounds  him.  Yet  opium  smoking  is 
by  no  means  confined  to  the  Chinese.  There  are 
numerous  places,  we  are  told,  on  the  Pacific  coast, 
where  opium  "lay-outs"  are  provided,  for  Ameri- 
cans. We  passed  through  a  barber  shop  to  reach  one 
of  the  opium  dens,  and  saw  the  "  tonsorial  artists" 
plying  their  calling.  I  cannot  so  well  describe  the 
operation  as  in  the  words  of  another  tourist :  "We 
watched  their  native  barber  as  he  scraped  the  unlath- 


IIO  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

ered  face  of  his  customer,  sitting  bolt  upright  on  a 
stool.  With  a  long,  flexible,  narrow  blade  the  artist 
moved  over  every  square  inch  of  surface  from  his 
breast-bone  to  the  back  of  his  head,  digging  out  his 
ears  and  nostrils,  scraping  with  equal  care  the  bridge 
of  his  nose,  his  forehead  and  every  other  spot,  whether 
encumbered  with  beard  or  not.  " 

The  Chinese  theatre  is  well  worth  a  visit.  The 
plays  are  all  historical  and  of  illimitable  length.  We 
arrived  about  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening,  and  the 
play  had  been  in  progress  since  noon,  with  a  half- 
hour's  intermission,  and  would  continue  until  mid- 
night. We  were  taken  up  and  down  narrow, 
winding  stairways,  through  dark  passageways,  to  see 
the  rooms  beneath  the  theatre  where  the  actors 
live,  —  dark,  dingy,  comfortless,  with  walls  begrimed 
.with  smoke,  — better  adapted  to  the  storage  of 
rubbish  than  for  human  habitation.  Up  the  steep, 
narrow  staircases  again,  through  the  "green-room," 
-then  by  a  curtained  doorway  we  were  ushered  upon 
the  stage  itself  and  shown  seats  at  one  side,  while  the 
actors,  but  a  few  feet  from  us,  were  performing  their 
parts  before  an  audience  which  filled  every  inch  of 
the  seating  room  of  the  building,  the  heads  of  those 
in  the  gallery  almost  touching  the  ceiling.  The 
Chinese  have  no  curtains  or  scene  'paintings  for  their 
stage,  and  when  a  new  scene  is  to  be  introduced  the 
paraphernalia  is  brought  in  and  arranged  before  the 
audience.  The  stage  was  not  more  than  twenty-five 


CHINATOWN.  Ill 

feet  deep,  and  the  orchestra  occupied  the  rear  of  it. 
And  such  an  orchestra !  There  were  one  or  two 
stringed  instruments  the  like  of  which  I  never  saw 
before,  but  the  main  thing  was  the  gong,  which 
drowned  the  voices  of  the  actors  when  they 
attempted  to  sing,  and  much  of  the  time  when  they 
were  speaking.  Some  of  the  performers  seemed  to 
be  good  actors,  but  the  whole  performance  was 
intensely  amusing.  As  we  left  we  were  shown  some 
of  the  costumes  belonging  to  the  theatre,  including 
robes  of  great  elegance  embroidered  in  gold  and 
§ilver. 

No  visit  to  Chinatown  is  complete  which  does  not 
include  the  Joss-house,  or  place  of  worship.  This 
is  not  a  place  of  meeting,  but  where  the  images  of 
those  ancestors  who  are  deemed  worthy  of  veneration 
for  th^ir  great  achievements  or  special  virtues  are 
placed,  and  where  the  worshipers  come  in  singly  or 
in  small  numbers  to  burn  sandal-wood  and  incense 
to  the  departed.  About  the  niches  where  the  forms 
representing  these  departed  worthies  are  enshrined 
there  are  most  elegant  carvings  and  inlaid  work, 
costly  incense-burners  and  candlesticks  and  other 
paraphernalia,  in  some  respects  so  like  what  may  be 
seen  in  Catholic  churches  that  one  almost  expects  to 
see  the  cross  also.  But  the  Joss-house  is  not  devoted 
solely  to  worship,  for  you  are  invited  to  purchase 
some  of  the  little  sandal-wood  sticks  for  "two  bits," 
and  various  other  articles  by  the  sale  of  which  the 
thrifty  Chinaman  may  turn  an  honest  penny. 


112  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

In  every  apartment  occupied  by  the  Chinese, 
from  opium  den  or  brothel  to  Joss-house,  there  will 
be  found  what  I  suppose  may  be  called  an  altar,  —  a 
red  banner  of  paper  or  silk  against  the  wall,  with 
written  characters  inscribed  upon  it  and  before  it 
burning  these  little  sandal-wood  sticks  or  tapers. 
You  frequently  see  these  little  fires  burning  on  the 
thresholds,  and  fire  seems  to  be  the  chosen  instru- 
ment for  placating  the  evil  spirits  or  for  warding  off 
their  influence. 

The  Chinese  fancy-goods  stores  found  numerous 
patrons  among  the  members  of  the  Raymond  party. 
The  beautiful  silk  and  crape  fabrics,  the  dainty  por- 
celain, the  embroideries,  the  lovely  carvings  and 
curious  mechanical  contrivances  were  so  interesting 
as  to  tempt  to  repeated  visits. 

The  old  Franciscan  mission  church  Dolores,*  three 
hundred  years  old,  is  an  object  of  interest.  It  is 
built  of  adobe,  with  roof  of  red  tiles.  Adjoining  it 
is  a  graveyard  in  which  is  a  monument  to  the  mem- 
ory of  the  first  Spanish  governor  of  "Alta  Califor- 
nia. ' '  Near  this  church  is  an  old  adobe  block-house, 
also  with  tiled  roof.  The  mint,  Golden  Gate  Park, 
and  Woodward's  Gardens,  are  all  places  of  interest. 
At  the  mint  we  were  shown  the  different  processes 
through  which  the  ore  is  carried  till  it  comes  out  in 
perfect  coins  of  exact  weight.  How  carefully  each 
coin  is  weighed,  that  none  shall  be  issued  lacking  or 
exceeding  in  the  slightest  degree  the  value  placed 


SEAL   ROCKS.  113 

upon  it !  A  gold  brick  worth  ten  thousand  dollars 
is  a  good  deal  heavier  than  it  looks,  as  I  found  on 
taking  it  in  my  hand.  Woodward's  Gardens  has  a 
menagerie  and  botanical  collection,  a  pavilion  for 
entertainments,  natural  curiosities,  marine  museums 
and  aquaria. 

A  ride  through  the  beautiful  Golden  Gate  Park 
and  on  to  Point  Lobos  Beach  and  the  Cliff  House 
was  one  of  the  pleasant  incidents  of  our  sojourn 
here.  On  the  highest  portion  of  the  park  grounds  is 
a  very  handsome  conservatory  containing  a  choice 
variety  of  the  finest  specimens  of  the  floral  kingdom. 
Point  Lobos  is  a  long  sandy  beach  terminating  at  the 
northern  extremity  in  a  rocky  cliff  rising  about  a 
hundred  feet  above  the  ocean,  and  upon  this  bluff  is 
the  Cliif  House.  This  is  a  great  point  of  attraction 
for  city  denizens  as  well  as  tourists,  not  alone  for 
the  salt  breeze  and  fine  sea  view, — which  includes  a 
long  reach  of  shore  line  and  the  blue  expanse  of  the 
Pacific  till  it  is  met  by  the  horizon  in  the  west,  — 
but  because  from  here  are  seen  the  famous  Seal 
Rocks.  These  rocks,  five  in  number,  are  four  or 
five  hundred  feet  distant  seaward  from  the  Cliff,  the 
highest  rising  from  seventy-five  to  a  hundred  feet 
above  the  water  at  low  tide.  Here  the  strange- 
looking  amphibious  creatures  from  which  the  rocks 
take  their  name  (more  properly  called  sea-lions),  of 
all  ages  and  sizes,  from  the  baby  seal  to  the  gray  old 
patriarch  weighing  a  thousand  pounds,  congregate 


114  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

in  swarms,  covering  almost  every  inch  of  the  rock 
surface,  wriggling,  squirming,  pushing,  barking, 
dropping  off  into  the  water  and  climbing  up  again 
continually.  '  The  younger  ones  are  incessantly 
active,  but  the  big  old  fellows  like  to  sun  themselves 
in  quiet,  and  when  the  small  fry  get  too  troublesome 
make  a  clean  sweep  of  them  into  the  water.  There 
is  a  curious  fascination  in  watching  the  strange, 
clumsy  creatures,  and  many  returned  to  the  scene 
again  and  again. 

We  have  been  told  many  times  since  we  reached 
California,  that  this  is  an  "exceptional"  season, 
that  the  rains  have  been  in  excessive  quantity,  and 
that  the  rainy  season  has  continued  at  least  a  month 
later  than  usual.  All  this  is  to  our  advantage,  as  a 
rule,  since  it  insures  freedom  from  dust,  and  the 
fields  are  not  so  brown  and  sere  as  they  ordinarily 
are  at  this  time  of  the  year.  But  the  wind,  which 
sweeps  the  streets  of  San  Francisco  every  day  and 
piles  the  sand  into  heaps  like  snow-drifts  on  the 
"sand  lots,"  is  not  exceptional,  —  that  is  in  season 
at  all  times.  As  San  Francisco  is  always  sure  of  a 
cool  breeze  some  portion  of  the  day,  and  there  is  a 
difference  of  only  eight  degrees  in  the  mean  temper- 
ature of  January  and  July,  the  residents  wear  about 
the  same  clothing  the  year  round,  and  there  is  pre- 
sented the  anomaly  of  one  lady  in  a  street-car 
wrapped  in  a  seal-skin  cloak  or  fur-lined  garment, 
while  her  next  neighbor  wears  only  the  lightest  of 


SANTA    CLARA   VALLEY.  115 

wraps,  or  no  wrap  at  all.  I  found  the  clothing  which 
was  comfortable  in  Manchester  the  first  of  May,  just 
about  right  here  in  June,  and  the  wonder  is  that  the 
ladies  here  should  ever  require  fur  garments,  as  the 
temperature  seldom  or  never  reaches  the  freezing 
point,  fifty-two  degrees  being  the  mean  in  January. 

Notwithstanding  that  rain  in  June  is  "almost 
unprecedented ' '  here,  Sunday,  June  8,  there  was  a 
drizzling  rain  nearly  all  day,  which  continued 
Monday  morning,  but  ceased  before  noon,  and  when 
we  started  for  Monterey  in  the  afternoon  only  broken 
clouds  partly  veiled  the  sky. 

Our  route  lay  through  the  lovely  Santa  Clara 
valley,  — 

"  Fair  as  a  garden  of  the  Lord,  " 

with  its  rich  fields  of  wheat  and  barley  on  either 
hand,  its  orchards  and  luxuriant  vines.  This  valley 
is  the  most  productive  part  of  California.  It  is  but 
a  few  miles  in  width,  lying  between  two  spurs  of  the 
low  Coast  Range  of  mountains.  Many  of  the  foot- 
hills are  cultivated  to  their  summits,  while  others 
afford  pasturage  for  cattle  and  sheep.  Oak  trees 
with  their  rich,  dark  foliage  frequently  dot  the  hill- 
sides and  add  to  the  beauty  of  the  landscape. 
Numerous  thrifty  towns  are  located  in  this  valley, 
San  Mateo.  San  Jose,  Santa  Clara,  Menlo  Park, 
Redwood,  Pajaro,  Gilroy  and  others,  and  are  the 
homes  of  many  wealthy  Californians.  Ours  was  the 
"Daisy"  train,  the  fastest  on  the  Pacific  coast,  and 


Il6  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

we  made  the  distance  of  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  miles  from  San  Francisco  to  Monterey,  stopping 
at  eight  stations,  in  three  hours  and  a  half,  arriving 
at  our  destination,  the  "  Queen  of  American  water- 
ing-places," about  sunset. 


CHAPTER    XI. 

MONTEREY. SAN     JOSE    AND     SANTA      CLARA. THE 

NAPA   VALLEY. ON    THE    PACIFIC. 

IT  is  recorded  that  when  the  Queen  of  Sheba, 
doubting  the  accuracy  of  the  reports  that  had 
reached  her,  went  up  to  Jerusalem  and  saw  for  herself 
the  great  splendor 'which  surrounded  King  Solomon, 
and  had  personal  evidence  of  his  wonderful  wisdom 
and  prosperity,  she  not  only  acknowledged  that  it 
was  a  true  report  she  had  heard,  but  declared  that  the 
half  had  not  been  told  her.  Something  akin  to  the 
feeling  which  drew  this  declaration  from  the  doubting 
queen  when  the  full  blaze  of  the  glory  of  the  king 
of  Jerusalem  burst  upon  her  animated  not  a  few  of 
us  as  we  first  looked  upon  the  Hotel  del  Monte  and 
its  surroundings,  and  we,  like  her,  were  ready  to 
exclaim  that  "  the  half  had  not  been  told  us." 

We  have  all  heard  of  that  profound  philosopher 
who  thought  it  "  providential  that  large  rivers  almost 
always  flow  near  large  cities;"  equally  "provi- 
dential "  is  it  that  a  grove  of  magnificent  old  oaks, 
pines  and  cedars  should  surround  the  Hotel  del 
Monte.  Wonderfully  picturesque  are  these  old  oaks 
with  their  gnarled  and  twisted  trunks,  their  low, 
broad  tops,  and  irregular,  wide-spreading  branches 


Il8  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

draped  with  gray  moss.  We  cannot  guess  their  age. 
Perhaps  some  of  them  were  bowing  their  heads  to 
the  Pacific  blasts  when  "Pious  Portala"  planted  his 
cross  in  Monterey  in  1770. 

There  are  one  hundred  and  twenty-six  acres  in  the 
grounds  about  the  Hotel  del  Monte,  and  I  doubt  if 
another  hotel  in  the  world  has  so  much  space  devoted 
to  flowers.  Not  a  room  in  the  immense  building 
that  does  not  look  out  upon  a  mass  of  bloom.  All 
the  familiar  home  flowers  flourish  here  in  great  luxu- 
riance, and  many  other  varieties  never  seen  in  our 
colder  clime  except  in  hot-houses.  The  veranda 
pillars,  are  covered  with  the  most  beautiful  purple 
clematis,  some  of  the  blossoms  being  ten  inches  in 
diameter,  honeysuckles  and  roses  and  other  climbing 
plants  make  trellis  and  wall  a  mass  of  fragrant  bloom, 
shrubs  and  borders  and  beds  are  everywhere  artisti- 
cally disposed  and  arranged.  In  some  of  the  beds 
colors  are  so  arranged  in  different  patterns  and 
designs  as  to  be  real  works  of  art.  From  fifty  to 
eighty  men  are  constantly  employed  on  these  grounds 
under  the  direction  of  one  of  the  best  landscape 
artists  in  the  world.  There  is  one  large  area  devoted 
to  the  different  varieties  of  the  cactus  family,  with 
their  strange,  uncouth  shapes  and  sharp  spines,  the 
monsters  of  the  vegetable  kingdom.  In  one  part  of 
the  grounds  a  ' '  maze ' '  or  labyrinth  has  been  laid 
out,  the  paths  separated  by  close  cypress  hedges,  in 
which  the  children  (and  some  of  larger  growth) 


HOTEL    DEL    MOXTE.  119 

amuse  themselves  in  trying  to  find  the  path  that  leads 
by  many  devious  turns  to  the  center.  Several  large 
bins  of  fine  white  sand  are  also  placed  in  the  grounds, 
where  little  children  may  disport  themselves  as  much 
as  they  please.  The  hotel  was  erected  five  years  ago, 
is  of  the  modern  gothic  style,  and  is  unsurpassed  in 
exterior  beauty  by  any  hotel  on  the  continent.  The 
main  building  is  three  hundred  and  eighty-five  feet 
in  length  and  one  hundred  and  fifteen  feet  in  width, 
with  extensive  wings  from  each  end, — a  maze  of 
towers  and  piazzas  and  angles  and  porches.  It  has 
accommodations  for  five  hundred  guests.  The  inte- 
rior is  a  model  of  neatness  and  light,  and  is  provided 
with  all  the  conveniences  that  could  be  desired. 

The  morning  following  our  arrival  at  the  del  Monte 
the  sky  was  overcast  and  rain  threatening.  Never- 
theless we  went  to  the  beach,  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
distant,  and  took  a  bath  in  the  Pacific  surf,  although 
the  temperature  was  at  fifty-six  degrees.  The  beach 
is  of  fine  sand,  and  there  is  very  little  undertow,  but 
it  is  not  nearly  so  beautiful  as  that  at  Santa  Monica. 
For  those  who  do  not  care  to  indulge  in  surf-bathing 
there  is  a  large  building  one  hundred  and  seventy  feet 
long  and  seventy  feet  wide  with  glass  roof,  containing 
four  swimming-tanks  filled  with  sea  water,  heated  to 
different  degrees  of  temperature  in  the  several  tanks, 
where  one  may  enjoy  the  luxury  of  bathing  and 
swimming  to  its  fullest  extent.  Clouds  continued 
through  the  day  and  there  was  a  sprinkling  of  rain; 


120  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

and  for  the  next  three  days  we  got  no  sunshine,  but 
most  of.  the  time  a  steady  drizzle.  There  is  an 
eighteen-mile  drive  on  this  peninsula  between  the  bay 
of  Monterey  and  Carmelo  Bay,  mostly  along  the 
shore,  passing  through  the  Pacific  Grove  Retreat  (the 
Martha's  Vineyard  of  the  Pacific  coast),  touching  at 
Moss  Beach,  Pebbly  Beach,  Cypress  Point  and  other 
places  of  interest.  It  is  without  doubt,  as  is  claimed, 
a  very  beautiful  drive,  but  the  mist  and  rain  so 
obscured  the  view,  and  cast  such  a  gloom  over  the 
landscape  that  we  could  not  form  a  correct  opinion 
of  it.  There  is  a  peculiar  variety  of  pine  trees  in 
the  forests  through  which  we  passed  which  bears  its 
cones  on  the  trunk  of  the  tree.  Most  of  the  trees  here 
have  a  heavy  drapery  of  gray  moss.  The  cypress 
trees  near  Cypress  Point  are  strange,  weird-looking 
objects,  with  low,  flat  tops  of  dark  somber  green, 
and  naked  gray  trunks,  the  branches  all  reaching  out 
on  the  side  farthest  from  the  shore. 

The  village  of  Monterey  is  a  little  more  than  a 
mile  from  the  Hotel  del  Monte,  on  the  southern  point 
of  the  bay.  It  was  here  that  Don  Sebastian  Vizcayno 
landed  and  planted  the  cross  in  1602,  under  instruc- 
tions of  Philip  III.  of  Spain  ;  here,  one  hundred  and 
sixty-eight  years  afterwards  Gov.  Portala  of  Lower 
California  and  Father  Junipero  Serra  came  and 
founded  the  mission  of  San  Carlos  or  Carmel,  five  or 
six  miles  to  the  southward.  A  cross  still  locates  the 
spot  where  Father  Serra  landed.  Monterey  early 


MONTEREY.  121 

became  the  capital  of  the  territory,  and  here,  in  1842, 
Commodore  Jones,  anticipating  the  Mexican  war, 
hoisted  the  Stars  and  Stripes  in  place  of  the  Mexi- 
can flag.  There  are  many  old  adobe  buildings  with 
tiled  roofs  in  the  village,  but  there  are  no  modern 
structures  of  any  pretensions.  From  the  old  adobe 
custom-house  rises  the  original  staff  from  which  the 
Stars  and  Stripes  first  floated  over  Monterey.  The 
Catholic  church,  which  was  built  in  1794,  of  a  yel- 
lowish stone,  is  still  in  good  condition.  The  altar- 
piece  is  considered  a  work  of  art.  The  pavement  in 
front  of  the  church  and  also  in  several  places  in  the 
sidewalks  is  composed  of  the  vertebrae  of  whales, 
this  bay  having  been  a  prominent  port  for  whaling 
vessels. 

The  climate  of  Monterey  is  said  to  be  remarkably 
equable,  the  mean  temperature  of  January  and  July 
varying  only  about  fifteen  degrees.  It  was  certainly 
so  cool  during  our  stay  that  we  were  glad  to  hover 
around  the  fire-places  a  good  portion  of  the  time. 
It  was  rather  disappointing  that  we  should  be  under 
a  cloud  or  an  umbrella  during  the  whole  four  days  of 
our  stay,  especially  as  we  had  been  told  that  ' '  from 
May  to  November  in  California  you  may  hang  up 
your  umbrella  and  waterproof."  But  there  could  be 
no  more  delightful  place  in  which  to  pass  the  time  in 
dull  weather,  and  we  enjoyed  it  all. 

When  we  left   Monterey  Saturday    morning  the 
clouds  were  breaking,  and  soon    the  sun  came  out 

9 


122  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

bright  and  clear.  Some  of  us  stopped  off  at  San 
Jose  and  took  a  ride  about  the  beautiful  town.  Not 
so  picturesquely  situated  as  Los  Angeles,  yet  the 
beautifully  shaded  streets,  with  long  rows  of  pepper 
and  locust  trees,  the  luxuriant  vines  and  blossoming 
plants  and  green  lawns  about  almost  every  residence, 
the  fine  business  blocks  and  public  buildings  and 
handsome  dwelling-houses,  made  this  to  me  the  most 
attractive  town  I  have  seen  in  California.  Fruits  and 
vines  grow  here  in  the  greatest  luxuriance,  and, 
indeed,  all  this  Santa  Clara  valley  is  noted  for  its 
fruitfulness.  We  took  the  horse-cars  from  San  Jose 
to  Santa  Clara,  the  latter  being  a  suburb  of  the 
former.  Our  party  filled  the  car,  and,  exhilarated 
by  the  delicious  atmosphere  and  bright  sky  after  the 
long  storm,  we  were  in  a  gala  mood,  and  I  doubt 
if  that  car  ever  witnessed  so  much  fun  before.  If 
the  doctor  did  turn  driver  and  put  the  poor  old 
horses  up  to  a  racing  gait,  they  bore  it  well,  and  their 
lawful  Jehu  had  a  chance  to  eat  his  lunch  undisturbed. 
This  road  from  San  Jose  to  Santa  Clara,  called  the 
Alameda,  is  a  broad,  beautiful  street,  lined  with  old 
willows'  planted  by  the  missionaries  in  1799  for  the 
purpose  of  shading  their  walk  from  the  San  Jose 
pueblo  to  their  church  at  Santa  Clara.  There  is  a 
large  Catholic  school  here  in  connection  with  the 
church. 

We  visited  here  the  grounds  of  Mr.  J.  P.   Pierce, 
who  has  ninety-five  acres  in  vineyard  and  orchard. 


SANTA    CLARA   CHERRIES.  123 

His  fruit  trees  are  principally  cherries,  though  there 
are  peaches,  apricots,  plums,  Japanese  plums,  pome- 
granates, bananas,  figs,  almonds,  walnuts,  —  almost 
every  fruit  and  nut  that  can  be  made  to  grow  in  this 
climate.  The  cherries  were  in  their  prime,  — indeed 
many  of  them  had  been  gathered,  but  such  cherries 
were  never  seen  in  the  East,  —  large,  luscious,  crisp. 
I  wonder  if  Mr.  Pierce  ever  found  so  appreciative 
samplers  of  the  delicious  sweetness  of  his  mammoth 
Black  Tartarians  or  the  delicate  crispness  of  his  Royal 
Anns  before  ! 

Besides  a  large  vineyard  with  vines  cut  back  in  the 
usual  way,  Mr.  Pierce  has  a  mile  of  grape-vine  arbor 
in  his  grounds,  twenty  to  thirty  feet  broad,  and  high 
enough  to  drive  a  carriage  beneath  it,  covered  chiefly 
with  Isabellas.  A  broad  graveled  driveway  between 
rows  of  shade  trees  leads  to  a  handsome  house,  lawns, 
flowers  and  shrubbery  add  their  beauty,  and  help  to 
make  this  fruitful  place  one  of  almost  ideal  attractive- 
ness. Our  party  are  under  great  obligations  to  the 
gentlemanly  proprietor  for  his 'courtesy  and  kindness. 
May  his  shadow,  and  his  cherries,  never  grow  less. 

Returning  to  San  Francisco  Saturday  night,  I  spent 
the  next  day  in  Vallejo,  thirty  miles  northward,  with 
friends.  This  town,  of  five  or  six  thousand  inhabi- 
tants, was  once  the.  capital  of  the  state,  but  has  now 
nothing  but  the  navy-yard  on  Mare  Island  to  keep  it 
alive.  It  is  beautifully  situated  on  several  hills,  com- 
manding a  fine  view  of  the  bay,  and  one  wonders 


124  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

why  it  should  not  continue  to  thrive.  There  do  not 
appear  to  be  any  trees  growing  spontaneously  here, 
but  the  eucalyptus  and  locust  grow  rapidly  when 
planted.  The  mud  dries  so  quickly  in  this  atmos- 
phere that  the  streets  are  full  of  hard  ridges,  as  rough 
as  if  suddenly  frozen. 

Monday  morning  I  took  the  train  north  for  Calis- 
toga  through  the  far  famed  Napa  valley.  This  valley 
is  not  so  broad  as  the  Santa  Clara,  and  is  less  pictur- 
esque, but  it  has  wonderfully  fruitful  orchards  and 
farms  and  flourishing  vineyards.  Farmers  were  hay- 
ing—  they  raise  wheat  and  barley  for  hay  here,  no 
grasses  being  grown  for  the  purpose  —  and  everywhere 
there  was  evidence  of  good  crops. 

In  the  mountains  inclosing  this  valley  there  are 
numerous  mineral  springs.  The  Napa  soda  springs, 
six  miles  from  Napa  City,  are  very  noted.  At  Cal- 
istoga,  which  is  the  terminus  of  the  railroad,  sixty- 
eight  miles  from  San  Francisco,  there  are  some 
twenty  mineral  hot  springs  which  were  at  one  time 
a  very  popular  resort. 

Seventeen  miles  from  Calistoga  by  stage  over  St. 
Helena  Mountain  is  Middletown,  of  interest  to  me 
as  the  home  of  friends  I  was  about  to  visit.  The 
ride  over  this  mountain,  an  ascent  of  nearly  four 
thousand  feet,  is  delightful  if  you  are  fortunate  as  I 
was  in  securing  a  seat  on  the  stage-box ;  but  if, 
unfortunate  as  I  was  on  the  return,  you  are  forced  to 
share  a  seat  barely  large  enough  for  two  persons  with 


HARBIN  S    SPRINGS.  125 

two  other  adults  and  a  child,  in  the  inside  of  the 
stage,  while  the  air  is  hot  enough  for  a  Turkish  bath* 
you  will  find  it  the  longest  ride  you  ever  knew  in  the 
same  distance,  and  must  be  gifted  with  a  very  poetic 
imagination  to  call  it  a  pleasure  ride.  St.  Helena 
Mountain  is  one  of  the  most  noted  of  the  Coast 
Range,  and  commands  a  splendid  view  of  the  Napa 
valley.  We  were  nearly  four  hours  in  making  the 
seventeen  miles,  and  at  length  alighted  in  a  charm- 
ing little  valley,  to  receive  the  warmest  kind  of 
welcome  from  the  doctor  and  his  wife.  I  find  that 
they  are  thriving  in  this  new  country,  that  the  doctor 
finds  renewed  health  and  vigor  in  this  mountain 
atmosphere,  and  plenty  of  profitable  work  in  his 
profession.  "Yet,"  said  Mrs.  M.,  "we  can't  know 
how  thankful  we  ought  to  be  that  we  were  born  in 
New  England  till  we  come  out  here." 

About  four  miles  from  Middletown,  up  in  the 
canon  seventeen  hundred  feet  above  the  sea,  is 
Harbin's  Springs,  a  very  popular  resort.  There  are 
numerous  springs,  all  either  warm  or  hot,  the  princi- 
pal one  having  a  temperature  of  one  hundred  and 
eighteen  degrees.  The  water  is  conducted  from 
this  spring  directly  into  a  bath-house,  where  baths 
at  any  temperature  may  be  had.  It  is  a  beautiful 
location,  and  the  hotel  here  is  well  patronized. 
Middletown  looks  forward  to  the  extension  of  the 
railroad  from  Calistoga  to  these  springs,  when  a  boom 
for  that  place  will  be  in  order. 


126  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Returning  to  San  Francisco  the  next  day,  June  17, 
we  bade  farewell  to  California  the  following  morn- 
ing, taking  steamer  for  Portland,  Oregon.  A  fog 
obscured  the  shore  line  to  some  extent,  so  that  we 
were  unable  to  see  the  beauty  of  the  bay  at  its  best, 
but  I  kept  position  on  the  hurricane-deck  till  we 
passed  through  the  Golden  Gate,  when,  not  thinking 
it  desirable  to  look  any  longer,  I  retired  to  my  state- 
room and  rested  the  next  two  days.  It  was  quite  a 
coincidence  that  a  large  portion  of  the  party  felt  the 
need  of  rest  also.  I  regret  my  inability  to  give  an 
adequate  description  of  the  delightfulness  of  sailing 
on  the  swelling  Pacific,  but  must  leave  it  to  the 
imagination  of  those  who  enjoy  being  — 

"Rocked in  the  cradle  of  the  deep." 

By  the  morning  of  the  third  day,  after  we  had 
passed  the  bar  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  river, 
I  was  sufficiently  refreshed  to  go  on  deck,  and  when 
the  boat  stopped  at  Astoria  for  half  an  hour,  took  the 
opportunity  to  go  ashore.  This  town  (except  the 
business  part,  which  is  built  on  a  foundation  of  piles 
over  the  river)  is  situated  on  the  side  of  a  steep  hill 
rising  from  the  river  bank,  a  verdure-covered  slope 
with  a  forest  of  evergreens  in  the  background,  and  is 
the  headquarters  of  the  salmon-canning  industry  of 
the  Columbia  river.  There  are  twenty-five  of  these 
canneries  here,  giving  employment  to  six  thousand 
persons  in  the  busy  season,  and  having  a  capital  of 


ASTORIA.  127 

$1,560,000  invested  in  buildings  and  machinery. 
In  1883  the  product  of  these  and  fourteen  other  can- 
neries farther  up  the  river  was  worth  $3,024,000. 
The  fisherman,  if  he  finds  his  own  boats  and  nets, 
gets  ninety  cents  a  fish;  if  the  company  supplies 
them,  fifty  cents.  The  fishermen  are  mainly  Norwe- 
gians, Swedes,  Danes  and  Italians,  but  Chinese  are 
employed  in  the  factories. 

Astoria  is  the  oldest  town  in  Oregon,  having  been 
founded  by  John  Jacob  Astor  (for  whom  it  was 
named)  and  the  Pacific  Fur  Company  in  1811.  In 
1813  it  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Northwest  Fur 
Company;  later,  the  headquarters  of  the  fur  trade 
were  transferred  to  Vancouver,  and  Astoria  dwindled 
till  this  salmon-canning  industry  was  established  in 
1866.  Some  of  our  party  made  a  hurried  visit  to 
one  of  the  canning  factories,  but  I  had  too  recently 
emerged  from  retirement  to  stomach  fishy  odors,  and 
am  unable  to  describe  the  canning  process. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THE    LOWER   COLUMBIA    RIVER.  PORTLAND. 

WE  have  a  sail  of  ninety-eight  miles  before  us  in 
going  from  Astoria  to  Portland,  the  last  twelve 
miles  being  on  the  Willamette  river.  The  Columbia 
is  very  broad  just  above  Astoria,  —  some  five  miles,  — 
although  it  is  only  a  mile  in  width  at  its  mouth,  twelve 
miles  below.  There  is  not  much  variety  to  the  scen- 
ery on  the  Lower  Columbia ;  the  shores,  of  which 
the  northern  is  in  Washington  Territory  and  the 
southern  in  Oregon,  are  generally  precipitous  and 
covered  with  a  dense  growth  of  cedar,  spruce  and  fir. 
This  limitless  stretch  of  forest  on  either  side  of  the 
broad  stream  is  a  goodly  sight,  the  first  timber  of 
any  account  (except  the  Sierra  Nevada  forests  on  the 
way  to  the  Yo  Semite)  that  we  have  seen  since  we  left 
the  Canada  woods  on  the  Grand  Trunk  Railroad. 
Occasionally  we  pass  a  chute  or  slide  down  the  steep 
bank,  used  for  conveying  the  logs  to  the  water,  and 
a  few  saw-mills  and  salmon-canning  factories  are  seen 
on  the  way.  The  first  place  of  any  size  which  we 
reach  is  Kalama,  thirty-eight  miles  from  Portland, 
on  the  Washington  shore.  This  town  is  on  the 
Oregon  Railway  &  Navigation  Company's  line  from 
Portland  to  Tacoma,  and  once  had  aspirations  which 


130  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

have  not  been  realized ;  wherefore  it  is  sometimes 
called  Kalam-ity.  The  hills  now  recede  from  the 
shores  on  both  sides  of  the  stream  and  the  intervale 
looks  as  if  it  might  yield  a  rich  return  to  the  cultiva- 
tor. Two  or  three  small  hamlets  only  are  passed 
until  we  reach  St.  Helen's  on  the  Oregon  side,  twenty- 
seven  miles  from  Portland.  Hitherto,  scarcely  any 
islands  have  been  seen.  One  high  rock,  rising  from 
the  water  near  the  Washington  shore,  called  Coffin 
Mountain,  was  formerly  utilized  by  the  Indians  as  a 
place  of  deposit  for  their  dead. 

The  river  is  very  deep  and  turbid,  and  is  now 
twenty-four  feet  above  low-water  mark,  and  the  pier 
at  St.  Helen's  is  nearly  on  a  level  with  the  water. 
As  we  approach  the  mouth  of  the  Willamette  numer- 
ous lovely  green  islands  appear,  one  large  island  called 
Niggertown  having  a  small  settlement  upon  it. 

Just  before  reaching  Kalama  we  had  our  first  view 
of  the  snow-covered  summit  of  Mt.  St.  Helen's,  its 
beautiful  cone  rising  9,750  feet  above  the  sea;  later 
on,  in  succession,  we  saw  from  different  points  Mts. 
Adams,  Hood,  Tacoma  and  Jefferson,  all  covered 
with  snow  from  base  to  summit.  From  one  point  on 
the  Willamette,  about  three  miles  from  its  mouth? 
we  were  able  to  see  all  five  of  these  snow-crowned 
peaks  with  one  sweep  of  the  eye.  First,  one  hundred 
miles  to  the  north,  Tacoma,  king  of  all  in  the  Cas- 
cade Range,  pierces  the  sky  at  an  elevation  of  14,444 
feet;  sixty-five  miles  to  the  northeast,  St.  Helen's 


LOWER    COLUMBIA    RIVER.  13! 

lifts  her  shining  head  9,750  feet ;  then  Mt.  Adams 
soars  in  majestic  grandeur  to  an  equal  height,  seventy- 
five  miles  distant ;  Mt.  Hood,  pride  of  Portland, 
towers  upward  11,025  feet,  fifty  miles  to  the  east; 
and  last,  Mt.  Jefferson  shows  his  snowy  crown  above 
the  lower  mountains  seventy-five  miles  to  the  south- 
east, a  beautiful  peak  nearly  10,000  feet  above  the 
sea.  Nowhere  else  on  the  face  of  the  earth  can  such 
a  glorious  panorama  be  seen.  In  other  lands,  and  in 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  there  are  loftier  peaks,  but 
they  are  seen  surrounded  by  other  high  mountains, 
and  from  a  table-land  or  elevation  nearly  half  their 
height ;  while  these  giants  of  the  Cascade  Range  are 
isolated,  and  our  point  of  vision  is  the  level  of  the 
sea.  From  the  placid  river,  with  its  shores  and 
islands  of  brightest  emerald,  over  the  darker  green 
of  the  firs  and  spruces  beyond,  and  the  soft  blue  hills 
in  the  distance,  the  eye  wanders  until  it  rests  on  the 
kingly  summit  of  Tacoma,  then  with  one  sweep  along 
an  arc  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  takes  in  the 
four  other  radiant  monarchs  rising  above  the  blue, 
their  hoary  heads  doubtless  still  bearing  snows  that 
covered  them  before  the  white  man  ever  saw  this 
continent,  or  before  the  savage  ever  paddled  his  bark 
canoe  along  this  water-course. 

There  is  a  marked  difference  in  the  color  of  the 
water  in  the  two  streams,  the  Willamette  being  of  a 
deep  green.  Its  width  is  about  two-thirds  that  of 
the  Columbia,  and  the  volume  is  immense.  Several 


132  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

years  ago  I  read  a  little  poem  upon  the  Willamette 
River,  written  by  S.  L.  Simpson  of  Portland,  Ore., 
whose  rhythmic  melody  has  often  haunted  my  mem- 
ory since  ;  and  now  that  I  was  sailing  on  the  "  lovely 
river,  " 

"  Winding,  widening  through  the  valley,  " 

while  the  soft  June  airs  were  blowing  about  us,  and 
the  bright  sky  smiled  overhead,  the  beautiful  lines 
again  recurred  to  me  and  I  found  myself  repeating  : 

"Spring's  green  witchery  is  weaving 
Braid  and  border  for  thy  side ; 
Grace  forever  haunts  thy  journey, 
Beauty  dimples  on  thy  tide. 

Onward  ever, 

Lovely  river, 
Softly  calling  to  the  sea  ; 

Time,  that  scars  us, 

Maims  and  mars  us, 
Leaves  no  track  nor  trench  on  thee." 

We  arrived  at  Portland  about  six  o'clock  Friday 
afternoon  and  are  quartered  at  the  Merchants'  Hotel. 
To  my  surprise  I  find  this  place  more  like  home  than 
any  other  we  have  visited.  Here  for  the  first  time 
we  see  maple  and  ash  and  elm  trees  in  the  streets, 
and  clover  blossoms  and  green  grass  bordering  the 
roadside,  and  real  New  England  weeds  —  plantain 
and  dock.  I  am  told,  too,  that  at  least  three-fifths 
of  the  white  population  came  here  from  east  of  the 
Ohio. 

The  business  part  of  Portland  is  low,  close  down 
on  the  bank  of  the  river,  too  low  and  flat  for  the  best 


PORTLAND.  133 

sanitary  conditions,  but  the  city  gradually  slopes  away 
to  the  hills  that  surround  it  on  all  sides  except  on  the 
river.  The  Willamette  flows  from  south  to  north, 
and  the  city  is  on  the  west  bank,  East  Portland  on 
the  opposite  side  being  a  separate  borough.  There 
are  many  elegant  residences  in  Portland,  not  only 
handsome  in  themselves  but  beautiful  in  their  location 
and  surroundings.  Portland  is  the  headquarters  of 
all  trade  in  the  Northwest,  and  the  long  rows  of 
elegant  warehouses  give  the  city  quite  a  metropolitan 
appearance  unlooked  for  in  a  place  of  its  size.  The 
wholesale  trade  in  1883  amounted  to  over  fifty-three 
million  dollars.  The  leading  industry  in  Portland 
is  lumber,  and  there  are  manufactures  of  flour,  car- 
riages, boots  and  shoes,  bricks,  artificial  ice,  bags 
and  bagging  and  other  products.  I  wras  surprised  to 
find  three  book-binderies  here,  employing  thirty  five 
hands,  as  I  had  not  expected  book- making  to  be  an 
industry  of  this  northwest  coast.  There  must  be 
many  book-buyers  here,  too,  if  the  number  of  book- 
stores is  any  criterion. 

I  was  much  interested  in  a  visit  to  an  artificial  ice 
manufactory,  of  which  there  are  two  in  the  city. 
The  river  never  freezes  hard  enough  to  furnish  the 
natural  product,  and  all  the  ice  used  has  to  be  manu- 
factured or  brought  by  rail  from  the  interior.  I  am 
unable  to  describe  the  process  by  which  the  caloric  is 
withdrawn  by  chemical  agents  from  the  vertical  iron 
pipes,  to  wrhich  the  water  freezes  as  it  trickles  down 


134  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

from  the  top  of  the  building,  the  immense  icicles 
gradually  increasing  in  size  like  a  tallow  dip.  Those 
who  have  seen  the  process  of  "  dipping  candles,"  as 
practiced  in  ancient  New  England  farm-houses,  will 
understand  what  I  mean.  When  the  icicles  have 
become  large  enough,  a  jet  of  steam  is  let  into  the 
pipes,  and  the  ice  is  cut  and  removed  in  blocks  of 
convenient  size.  The  ice  is  firm  and  clear,  —  indeed 
it  is  purer  than  the  natural  product,  as  all  sediment 
drops  to  the  bottom.  It  is  sold  for  a  cent  a  pound. 
"  We  used  to  get  two  cents  a  pound  till  the  railroad 
was  built  and  brought  in  ice  from  other  parts,"  said 
the  manufacturer  sadly. 

The  Chinese  population  numbers  some  five  or  six 
thousand,  and  they  have  numerous  stores  on  some 
of  the  best  business  streets,  not  crowded  together  as 
in  §an  Francisco.  I  judge  there  is  not  so  much 
prejudice  against  the  Mongols  here  as  in  California. 

The  soil  and  climate  seem  very  favorable  to  fruit 
culture.  Apple  and  pear  trees  are  loaded  so  that 
their  branches  have  to  be  propped  up,  and  delicious 
cherries,  currants  and  gooseberries  are  in  abundance. 
Everything  indicates  a  moist  climate.  Western 
Oregon  is  called  the  "  WTebfoot "  country  on  this 
account.  In  a  region  where  grass  grows  in  such 
luxuriance,  it  would  seem  that  dairying  should  be  a 
leading  industry,  yet  I  learn  that  more  than  half  the 
supply  of  dairy  products  and  vegetable  produce  con- 
sumed here  is  brought  from  California.  Butter  is 


PORTLAND.  135 

sold  at  seventy-five  cents  a  pound,  and  some  of  it  is 
brought  across  the  continent.  If  its  endurance  is 
equal  to  its  strength  (judging  from  the  sample  I 
tasted),  it  could  stand  a  journey  around  the  world. 
Salmon,  fresh  from  its  native  waters,  of  course  we 
have  in  abundance.  It  is  very  nice,  but  I  think  the 
salmon  that  swim  in  eastern  waters  surpass  this  in 
richness  of  flavor. 

The  finest  public  building  in  Portland  is  the  post- 
office.  It  is  of  stone,  handsomely  finished,  and  is 
surrounded  by  lawn  and  shade  trees.  The  collector 
of  internal  revenue  and  other  officials  have  offices  in 
the  building.  .An  elegant  hotel,  "The  Villard,"  has 
its  stone  walls  partly  up,  but  work  is  not  progressing 
upon  it  at  present.  It  is  "up-town,"  near  the  post- 
office  and  court-house,  a  more  desirable  location  for 
tourists  than  is  occupied  by  either  of  the  existing 
hotels. 

Portland  has  increased  wonderfully  in  population 
during  the  past  four  years.  By  the  census  of  1880  it 
had  only  about  twenty-one  thousand  inhabitants ; 
now  it  claims  over  forty  thousand,  —  about  the  same 
as  its  namesake  on  Casco  Bay.  Like  that  namesake 
it  is  beautiful  for  situation.  It  does  not  overlook 
the  bright  waters  of  a  bay  studded  with  picturesque 
islands,  and  dotted  with  the  white  wings  of  com- 
merce, but  the  " lovely  river"  winds  at  its  feet,  a 
broad  expause  of  varied  landscape  stretches  before  it, 
and  —  matchless  possession  !  — Mt.  Hood,  on  whose 


136  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

majestic  beauty  the  eye  never  tires  of  gazing,  is 
the  Pacific  Portland's  very  own.  No  wonder  her 
people  are  proud  of  it  that  her  artists  never  weary 
of  painting  it.  Pictures  of  the  mountain  are  numer- 
ous in  the  shop-windows,  of  various  sizes,  and  in 
varying  aspects,  but  the  favorite  seems  to  present  it 
suffused  with  a  bright  crimson  glow.  "Is  it  possible 
the  mountain  is  ever  so  rose-colored  as  these  artists 
represent  it  ?  "  I  asked  a  citizen  ;  and  was  assured 
that  the  pictures  did  not  exaggerate  the  color  as  seen 
at  sunset  in  certain  conditions  of  the  atmosphere. 
From  the  hills  on  the  west  side  of  the  town  a  view  of 
the  mountain  may  be  had  almost  to  its  base.  It  is 
irregular  in  its  outline,  though  nearly  pyramidal,  and 
a  "notch  "  at  one  side  of  the  summit  shows  the  loca- 
tion of  the  crater.  It  is  believed  that  volcanic  action 
has  not  yet  entirely  ceased,  as  smoke  and  fire  have 
been  seen  to  issue  from  it  within  three  or  four  years. 
Mt.  St.  Helen's  may  also  be  seen  from  the  same 
point  of  view,  but  not  to  its  full  extent,  intervening 
hills  cutting  off  the  lower  half. 

From  the  Cemetery  Hill,  three  or  four  miles  out 
of  Portland,  may  be  seen  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
landscapes  I  have  ever  looked  upon.  Beneath  us  lies 
the  "lovely  river"  with  its  verdant  shores  and  eme- 
rald isles,  "winding,  widening  through  the  valley," 
till  lost  in  the  embrace  of  the  Columbia,  its  beauty- 
dimpled  surface  rippled  by  the  dipping  of  oars  or  the 
passage  of  white-winged  yachts ;  sloping  away  to  the 


PORTLAND.  137 

hills  from  either  bank  are  the  towns  of  Portland  and 
East  Portland,  with  church  spires  and  prominent 
buildings  rising  from  a  forest  of  shade  trees,  the 
apparent  repose  undisturbed  save  by  the  passage  of 
the  ferry-boat  across  the  stream ;  softly  blue  in  the 
distance  rise  hill  and  mountain  against  the  sky  with 
ever  varying  outline ;  to  the  extreme  right  the  white 
peak  of  Mt.  Hood  shows  above  the  intervening  hills 
and  forests ;  and  straight  before  us  —  the  blue  cur- 
tains drawn  aside  to  reveal  the  full  measure  of  her 
transcendent  loveliness  —  St.  Helen's  stands,  with 
snowy  draperies  reaching  from  the  dome  which 
crowns  her  peerless  cone  to  her  very  feet. 

It  was  unaccountable  to  me  at  first  that  Hood 
should  be  the  special  pet  and  pride  of  Portland  rather 
than  St.  Helen's,  except  that  the  former  can  be  seen 
in  its  full  majesty  from  points  within  the,  city  limits, 
and  it  is  necessary  to  go  outside  to  get  the  best  view 
of  St.  Helen's;  but  a  citizen  explained  that  the  latter, 
being  rounded  into  almost  perfect  symmetry  of  form, 
always  presented  about  the  same  aspect,  while  Hood, 
being  irregular  in  outline,  is  more  variable  in  appear- 
ance and  therefore  more  interesting.  It  may  be  so. 
It  is  worth  a  journey  across  the  continent  to  look 
upon  either  of  them. 

Many  of  our  party  found  friends  and  acquaint- 
ances in  Portland  who  gave  them  cordial  greeting. 
Among  the  New  Hampshire  men  here  is  Mr.  E.  P. 
Rogers,  formerly  of  Plymouth,  the  general  ticket 
10 


138  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

agent  of  the  Oregon  &  California  Railroad  running 
up  the  Willamette  valley,  whose  courtesies  are  grate- 
fully remembered.  I  like  this  pleasant  Portland,  and 
those  of  its  people  whom  I  have  met.  It  is  a  quiet, 
orderly  city,  abounding  in  churches  and  schools  and 
whatever  tends  to  make  society  well  ordered  and  pro- 
gressive. With  the  exception  of  the  Chinese,  but  a 
small  portion  of  its  population  is  of  foreign  birth. 
Ours  is  the  first  excursion  party  which  has  ever  visited 
Portland  from  the  East  (except  an  excursion  of  offi- 
cials over  the  Northern  Pacific  road),  but  it  is  not 
likely  to  be  the  last.  I  am  sure  that  in  leaving  we 
all  echo  Rip  Van  Winkle's  toast :  "  May  it  live  long 
and  prosper." 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

PUGET  SOUND  AND  ITS  PORTS.  VICTORIA. 

WE  left  Portland  Monday,  June  23,  at  one 
o'clock  P.  M.,  by  steamer  down  the  Willamette 
and  Columbia  rivers  to  Kalama,  Washington  Terri- 
tory, thence  by  rail  over  the  Pacific  Division  of  the 
Northern  Pacific  road  to  Tacoma,  near  the  southern 
extremity  of  Puget  Sound,  where  we  took  the 
steamer  Olympia  for  our  trip  through  the  sound  to 
Victoria.  Our  road  from  Kalama  lies  along  the 
Cowlitz  river  and  the  Chehalis  valley.  The  over- 
flowing streams  showed  that  we  were  still  in  the 
"  web  foot"  country.  It  is  a  good  farming  region, 
though  there  are  very  few  settlements  and  none  of 
any  importance  till  we  reach  Tacoma.  The  country 
is  heavily  timbered.  It  is  estimated  that  there  are 
twenty  million  acres  of  timber  land  in  Washington 
Territory. 

It  was  ten  o'clock  in  the  evening,  and  rain  was 
falling,  when  we  embarked  on  the  steamer.  The 
Olympia  is  an  elegant  new  boat,  with  capacious 
state-rooms,  and  is  the  property  of  the  Oregon  Rail- 
way &  Navigation  Company,  as  are  also  the  boats 
running  between  Portland  and  San  Francisco.  It 


I4O  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

took  some  three  hours  to  load  the  freight,  and  the 
curious  'medley  of  sounds  that  floated  up  from  the 
lower  deck  —  the  squealing  and  grunting  of  pigs, 
the  barking  of  dogs,  the  bleating  and  trampling  of 
sheep,  mingled  with  the  voices  of  men  —  precluded 
all  inclination  to  sleep  till  the  boat  at  length  moved 
from  the  wharf.  We  reached  Seattle  about  six 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  but  the  clouds  had  not 
broken  and  the  prospect  for  a  view  of  the  scenery 
on  the  sound  was  not  flattering.  The  maps  show  us 
the  general  outline  of  Puget  Sound,  extending  north 
and  south,  connected  with  the  Pacific  Ocean  by  the 
straits  of  Juan  de  Fuca  (which  separate  the  peninsula 
from  Vancouver's  Island),  and  covering  an  area  of 
two  thousand  square  miles,  but  give  no  adequate 
idea  of  the  many  arms  reaching  out  like  a  devil-fish 
in  all  directions,  or  of  the  great  irregularity  of  the 
shores,  which  are  full  of  beautifully  curved  bays  and 
inlets,  while  numerous  islands  help  to  confuse  and 
diversify  the  shore  line.  While  the  coast  length  of 
Washington  Territory  is  but  two  hundred  and  forty, 
five  miles,  the  actual  shore  line  is  seventeen  hundred 
and  thirty-eight  miles. 

The  waters  of  the  sound  are  calm  and  placid,  and 
the  appearance  is  more  that  of  an  inland  lake  than 
a  part  of  the  ocean.  Extending  north  and  south 
through  the  peninsula  on  the  west  is  the  beautiful 
Olympic  Range,  six  thousand  to  eight  thousand  feet 
high,  and  on  the  east,  dividing  the  territory  Ion- 


PUGET    SOUND.  141 

gitudinally,  the  Coast  Range  bounds  our  horizon. 
Our  boat  changes  its  course  so  frequently  in  follow- 
ing the  windings  of  the  coast  to  touch  at  the  different 
ports,  that  we  sail  towards  every  point  of  the  com- 
pass, and  at  length  we  get  so  confused  as  to  our 
direction  as  to  be  in  the  condition  of  the  small  boy, 
who,  having  gotten  into  his  garments  the  wrong  way, 
couldn't  tell  whether  he  was  going  to  school  or 
coming  home. 

The  shores  of  Puget  Sound  are  covered  with  mag- 
nificent forests,  affording  an  almost  exhaustless  supply 
of  timber,  and  the  ports  are  the  location  of  exten- 
sive saw-mills  which  produce  an  immense  quantity 
of  lumber  yearly.  The  largest  saw-mill  is  at  Port 
Blakely.  This  mill,  in  one  day  of  eleven  and  one- 
half  hours,  sawed  out  283,000  feet ;  and  its  total 
product  in  1883  was  49,189,785  feet.  Our  boat 
stopped  long  enough  at  Port  Ludlow  for  us  to  visit 
the  saw-mill  there.  This  mill  is  four  hundred  and 
fifty  feet  long,  and  although  its  capacity  is  not  quite 
equal  to  that  at  Port  Blakely,  its  product  is  enor- 
mous, being  175,000  feet  daily.  It  was  interesting 
to  watch  the  gang-saws  in  their  rapid  motion  and 
note  how  quickly  the  immense  logs  were  trans- 
formed into  boards  or  planks.  Machinery  does 
everything  here.  It  grapples  the  logs  in  the  water 
with  hooks  attached  to  an  endless  chain  and  draws 
them  up  an  incline  into  the  mill,  places  them  upon 
the  carriage  ready  to  be  riven  by  the  saw,  and  it 


142  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

removes  all  slabs  and  refuse,  railroading  them  to  a 
point  outside  of  the  mill  near  the  water's  edge,  and 
drops  them  into  a  never-dying  fire.  Some  of  the 
logs  here  were  of  enormous  size,  and  the  lumber 
perfectly  free  from  knots  or  defects.  Accustomed 
to  play  about  a  saw-mill  in  my  childhood,  it  was 
pleasant  to  renew  here  on  this  far  off  coast  the 
childish  experience  of  riding  on  the  carriage  which 
conveys  the  logs  back  and  forth  as  they  move  to 
the  motion  of  the  saw.  We  are  still  but  "children 
of  a  larger  growth." 

The  daily  capacity  of  all  the  leading  mills  on  Puget 
Sound  is  1,645,000  feet,  and  the  lumber  is  shipped 
to  China,  Japan,  Australia  and  South  America,  as 
well  as  to  American  ports.  Some  of  the  mills  are 
supplied  with  electric  lights  so  as  to  work  continu- 
ously when  the  demand  is  brisk.  A  little  idea  of 
the  immensity  of  this  lumber  industry  is  conveyed  in 
the  statement  that  one  logger  paid  $1,500  for  tallow 
to  grease  the  skids  used  one  year  in  hauling  five 
million  feet  of  logs  worth  $35,000.  The  regular 
landing-places  between  Seattle  and  Victoria  are 
Ports  Madison,  Gamble,  Ludlow  and  Townsend. 
The  last  is  the  most  important,  having  a  population 
of  sixteen  hundred,  and  on  our  return  trip  we 
stopped  long  enough  to  land  and  get  a  look  at  the 
town.  The  stores  and  shops  and  business  part  of 
the  place  are  located  on  a  street  on  a  level  with  the 
pier,  but  the  principal  residences  are  on  a  bluff  which 


PORT    TOWNSEND.  143 

rises  precipitously  some  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet. 
A  short  cut  to  this  upper  town  is  by  long  flights  of 
steps  starting  from  a  point  a  few  rods  opposite  the 
landing,  or  by  a  zigzag  incline  farther  along;  but 
teams  have  to  go  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the 
wharf  before  they  can  find  an  incline  gradual-  enough 
for  them  to  ascend.  One  could  hardly  conceive  a 
more  charming  location  for  a  summer  residence  than 
this  upper  town  of  Port  Townsend.  High  enough 
to  always  insure  a  cool  breeze,  overlooking  the  beau- 
tiful bay  with  its  varied  shore  line,  with  two  moun- 
tain ranges  visible  in  the  distance,  the  broad,  smooth 
streets  bordered  by  a  green  carpet,  flowers  and 
blossoming  vines  flourishing  in  every  garden,  it  is 
truly  a  delightful  spot  as  seen  that  bright  June  morn- 
ing. This  town  is  the  port  of  entry  for  the  Puget 
Sound  customs  district,  and  is  garrisoned  with  United 
States  troops.  From  a  primitive  building  of  rough 
lumber  at  the  foot  of  the  stairs  leading  up  the  bluff  is 
issued  a  little  semi-weekly  paper  called  the  Port  of 
Entry  Times. 

We  reached  Victoria,  Vancouver's  Island,  about 
five  o'clock,  P.  M.  The  sun  had  broken  through  the 
clouds,  and  the  town,  rising  from  the  rocky  shores 
of  a  beautifully  curved  bay,  looked  very  pleasant  in 
the  afternoon  light.  Carriages  were  in  waiting  at 
the  wharf  to  receive  us,  and  we  were  all  soon  being 
driven  at  a  rapid  rate  through  the  town  and  to  all 
the  points  of  interest  in  this  part  of  the  island. 


144  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Victoria  is  the  capital  of  British  Columbia,  having  a 
population  of  six  thousand  to  eight  thousand,  and  the 
government  buildings,  —  parliament  house,  land  and 
works  department,  printing-office,  messenger's  resi- 
dence and  supreme-court  building, — built  of  brick  in 
the  Swiss  style,  occupy  a  pretty  square  on  James 
Bay.  A  granite  monument  to  Sir  James  Douglas,  the 
first  governor  of  the  colony,  is  located  on  the  same 
square.  The  lieutenant-governor's  residence  is  a 
handsome  building  with  elegant  grounds  in  the  out- 
skirts of  the  city.  A  hawthorn  hedge  about  these 
grounds  attracted  attention,  from  its  beauty  as  well  as 
its  novelty.  On  Beacon  Hill,  which  overlooks  a 
beautiful  and  extensive  sea  prospect,  there  is  a  race- 
course, and  adjoining  it  a  public  park. 

The  streets  of  Victoria  are  broad  and  clean,  the 
business  blocks  chiefly  of  brick  or  stone,  the  build- 
ings low,  and,  although  there  are  not  many  of  great 
elegance,  they  are  generally  neat  and  tasteful  in  ap- 
pearance, their  attractiveness  enhanced  by  the  pretty 
gardens  surrounding  them  and  the  ivies  and  honey- 
suckles which  clamber  over  them  in  profusion.  That 
English  ivies  will  thrive  outdoors  and  grow  in  great 
luxuriance  here  in  a  latitude  more  than  three  hun- 
dred miles  farther  north  than  Manchester  is  proof  of 
the  remarkable  mildness  of  the  climate.  Indeed,  all 
along  through  Oregon  and  Washington,  west  of  the 
Cascade  Range,  as  well  as  on  this  island,  the  winters 
are  extremely  mild,  very  little  snow  being  seen,  and 


VICTORIA.  1 45 

the  ice  never  forms  thick  enough  for  cutting.  The 
mildness  is  attributed  to  the  warm  winds  blowing 
over  the  Japan  current  or  "gulf  stream." 

There  is  a  Chinatown  here,  and  there  are  also 
many  Indians  seen  on  the  streets,  of  the  Songhish 
tribe,  who  have  a  reservation  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  harbor.  These  Indians  are  partial  to  bright 
colors,  and  are  not  unpicturesque  in  their  attire,  if 
seen  far  enough  away  for  distance  to  lend  enchant- 
ment to  the  view.  Three  daily  papers  in  Victoria 
keep  the  people  informed  of  current  events,  and 
eleven  churches  look  after  their  spiritual  welfare. 
There  are  hospitals,  orphan  asylums,  schools  and 
other  public  institutions,  Protestant  and  Catholic. 
The  view  from  some  of  the  upper  streets  is  very  fine. 
The  Olympic  Range  can  be  seen  across  the  straits  of 
Juan  de  Fuca  ;  and  on  the  east  the  snowy  crown  of 
Mt.  Baker  —  next  to  Tacoma  and  Hood  the  highest 
peak  in  the  Cascade  Range  —  is  revealed  to  the  gaze, 
as  well  as  a  broad  expanse  of  water  scenery. 

The  roads  leading  from  the  town  are  in  splendid 
condition,  being  all  macadamized,  and  we  were 
whirled  along  at  a  rate  faster  than  I  ever  knew  hack 
horses  to  go  before,  for  we  had  twenty  miles  to 
compass  befofe  we  returned  to  our  boat.  Wild  roses 
are  in  profusion  along  the  roadside  and  everywhere 
vegetation  is  rank,  showing  a  rich  soil  and  a  moist 
climate.  The  scenery  is  pretty  and  picturesque,  and 
the  air  wonderfully  exhilarating.  Some  traveler,  writ- 


146  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

ing  of  the  climate  of  Victoria,  says:  "The  atmos- 
phere is  charged  with  ozone  peculiar  to  Victoria 
only."  Whether  this  be  true  or  not,  nothing  in 
my  experience  matches  it,  unless  it  be  the  delicious 
atmosphere  of  Mt.  Desert. 

Vancouver's  Island  is  two  hundred  miles  long  ; 
its  shores  are  full  of  bays  and  inlets,  affording  excel- 
lent harbors ;  it  has  a  great  variety  of  scenery, 
mountains  eight  thousand  to  nine  thousand  feet  in 
height,  lakes,  rivers,  forests,  rich  coal  mines,  a  de- 
lightful climate  and  a  fertile  soil ;  and  we  can't  help 
regretting  that  in  the  settlement  of  the  great  bound- 
ary dispute  between  Uncle  Sam  and  Victoria  R.  the 
Stars  and  Stripes  were  not  left  floating  over  it  instead 
of  the  Cross  of  St.  George. 

One  of  the  points  visited  was  the  naval  station  at 
Esquimalt,  four  or  five  miles  from  the  town.  This 
is  the  chief  British  naval  station  on  the  Pacific. 
There  is  an  excellent  harbor  here,  and  a  dry  dock 
four  hundred  feet  long  and  sixty-five  feet  wide  is  in 
process  of  construction.  There  are  also  a  government 
arsenal  and  a  small  village  near  the  harbor.  A  ves- 
sel had  sunk  in  the  harbor  a  few  days  before  our 
arrival  and  preparations  were  in  progress  for  raising 
it.  We  find  the  days  preceptibly  lengthened  in  this 
northern  latitude,  and  although  it  was  eight  o'clock 
when  we  returned  to  the  steamer  the  daylight  still 
remained. 

After  supper  on  the  boat  most  of  us  returned  to 
have  a  look  at  the  town  by  gas-light.  All  shops  and 


PUGET    SOUND.  147 

business  close  here  at  six  o'clock,  but  two  or  three 
curiosity  shops  were  kept  open  this  evening  in  antici- 
pation of  a  visit  from  the  excursionists.  The  result 
proved  the  wisdom  of  the  proprietors,  as  nearly  all 
invested  in  some  souvenir  of  the  place.  We  are  all 
charmed  with  this  pleasant  town  and  its  surroundings 
and  count  the  briof  hours  of  our  stay  at  this  the 
farthest  point,  the  ultima  thule  of  our  journey,  as 
among  the  most  delightful  of  our  trip  •  and  it  was 
almost  with  regret  that  we  steamed  out  of  the  harbor 
next  morning  at  sunrise  and  took  a  last  look  of  its 
beautiful  rock-bound  shores  and  verdure-crowned 
heights. 

The  distance  from  Tacoma  to  Victoria  is  one 
hundred  and  ten  miles,  and  it  is  on  the  return  journey 
that  we  realize  the  wonderful  beauty  of  the  "  Medi- 
terranean of  the  North. "  On  the  outward  trip  the 
sky  was  overcast  and  the  mountains  on  either  hand 
were  entirely  obscured  by  clouds  until  we  were  near 
the  end  of  our  course ;  but  to-day  the  sun  shines  out 
brightly,  and  although  clouds  partially  veil  the  higher 
peaks,  we  are  able  to  see  the  general  outline  and 
note  the  especial  beauty  of  the  Olympic  Range.  The 
water  is  smooth  as  glass,  reflecting  shore  and  sky  as 
a  mirror,  and  the  loveliness  of  the  scenery  is  incom- 
parable. "The  most  beautiful  view  in  the  world  — 
surpassing  Lake  Como  ! ' '  said  our  English  fellow- 
traveler  enthusiastically.  The  shores,  covered  with 
magnificent  forests  to  the  water's  edge,  are  pictur- 


148  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

\ 

esquely  curved  and  rounded  and  ever  varying,  and 
with  each  change  of  position  a  new  scene  of  beauty 
is  brought  to  view.  Puget  Sound  is  really  an  archi- 
pelago. Some  of  the  islands  are  of  great  extent. 
Whidby  Island  stretches  its  length  along  between  us 
and  the  eastern  shore  for  nearly  twenty  miles.  The 
islands  as  well  as  the  main  lanjj  are  covered  with 
timber,  and  while  the  shores  are  full  of  bays  and 
inlets  and  excellent  harbors,  the  water  is  so  deep  that 
anchorage  is  difficult.  This  is  true  both  at  Seattle 
and  Tacoma,  and  I  observed  that  at  Port  Gamble, 
where  we  stopped  for  a  few  minutes,  the  wharf  ex- 
tended but  a  few  feet  over  the  water,  the  shore  rising 
so  precipitously  that  the  boat  could  almost  touch  the 
bank.  In  scores  of  places  ships  could  be  loaded 
directly  from  the  shore. 

At  Port  Gamble  we  saw  a  great  number  of  star- 
fishes clinging  to  the  piles,  of  immense  size  and 
peculiar  color,  some  of  them  being  of  a  terra-cotta 
and  others  of  a  "crushed-strawberry"  hue.  It  was 
easy  reaching  them  from  the  steamer,  and  our  English 
comrade  secured  a  fine  specimen  to  take  home  to 
England. 

Seattle,  which  is  the  largest  place  on  Puget  Sound, 
is  beautifully  situated  on  the  eastern  shore  at  the  head 
of  Elliott  Bay,  eighty-five  miles  from  Victoria  and 
twenty-five  miles  from  Tacoma,  and  has  a  population 
of  some  ten  thousand.  This  town  had  its  beginnings 
a  third  of  a  century  ago,  but  it  has  chiefly  grown 


SEATTLE.  149 

within  the  past  half-dozen  years.  No  less  than  a 
thousand  new  buildings  were  erected  in  1883.  There 
are  splendid  business  blocks,  of  brick  and  stone,  and 
costly  buildings  still  going  up,  showing  that  its  people 
have  faith  in  its  future,  notwithstanding  the  Northern 
Pacific  terminus  has  been  located  at  Tacoma  instead 
of  here,  as  was  at  one  time  the  expectation  of  its  citi- 
zens. The  manufacture  of  lumber  is  its  leading  busi- 
ness, but  there  are  furniture  manufactories,  machine 
shops  and  various  wood-working  industries.  There 
are  seventy-four  steamers  engaged  in  the  inland  traffic 
of  Puget  Sound,  the  majority  of  which  have  their 
headquarters  here,  and  the  few  minutes  we  had  to  run 
up  on  to  the  main  street  were  sufficient  to  show  that 
it  is  a  very  live  and  busy  town.  With  one  of  the  best 
harbors  in  the  world  and  a  situation  unsurpassed  for 
beauty,  it  ought  to  be  what  it  claims,  the  "Queen 
City  of  the  Sound." 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

TACOMA. 

'"pACOMA  is  an  Indian  word,  said  to  signify 
"  nourishing  breast. "  It  was  the  name  given 
by  the  aborigines  to  the  highest  mountain  in  the 
Cascade  Range,  put  down  on  the  old  maps  as 
Mt.  Rainier.  It  is  the  name  adopted  by  the  new 
city  on  Puget  Sound,  selected  as  the  terminus  of  the 
Northern  Pacific  Railroad.  The  terminal  city  was 
at  first  known  as  New  Tacoma,  a  settlement  with  the 
aboriginal  name  having  existed  for  several  years  two 
or  three  miles  back  from  the  shore,  but  by  act  of  the 
last  legislature  the  old  and  the  new  were  united 
and  the  praenomen  discarded.  Some  ten  years  ago, 
when  it  was  decided  to  make  the  terminus  of  the 
road  at  this  point,  the  Tacoma  Land  Company,  a 
corporation  composed  of  fifty-one  per  cent  of  the 
Northern  Pacific  Railroad  Company  and  forty-nine 
per  cent  of  individual  stockholders  of  that  road,  with 
a  capital  of  a  million  dollars,  purchased  sixteen 
thousand  acres  of  land  here  at  the  head  of  Com- 
mencement Bay,  and  subsequently  cleared  a  square 
mile  of  land,  and  put  the  lots  in  the  market.  The 
failure  of  Jay  Cooke  and  the  consequent  delay  in  the 
construction  of  the  road  postponed  the  building  of 


152  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

the  city,  and  in  1880  there  were  but  seven  hundred 
and  twenty  inhabitants  here.  During  the  next  two 
years  the  population  increased  to  three  thousand, 
and  at  the  beginning  of  1884  it  was  six  thousand. 

The  shores  of  the  bay  rise  precipitously  about  a 
hundred  feet,  then  gradually  or  in  successive  ter- 
races to  the  height  of  three  hundred  feet.  On  this 
slope,  so  admirably  adapted  by  nature  for  the  site  of 
a  great  city,  are  broad  streets,  regularly  laid  out 
and  graded,  with  handsome  business  blocks  of  brick 
or  stone,  neat  and  substantial  residences,  elegant 
churches,  one  being  of  stone  and  costing  twenty- 
five  thousand  dollars,  a  splendid  public-school  build- 
ing where  ten  teachers  and  five  hundred  pupils  are 
enrolled,  a  magnificent  ladies'  seminary,  two  banks, 
more  than  a  hundred  and  fifty  stores  and  busi- 
ness houses,  car-shops  employing  one  hundred  and 
seventy-five  hands,  furniture  manufactories,  foundry 
and  machine-shops,  sash  and  door  shops,  a  candy 
factory,  salmon  cannery,  brick-yards,  several  saw- 
mills,—  one  of  which  employs  two  hundred  hands 
about  the  mill  and  six  hundred  at  the  logging-camps 
and  produces  fifty  million  feet  of  lumber  in  a  year,  — 
shingle  and  lath  mills,  and  various  other  industries. 

I  am  aware  that,  as  a  rule,  statistics  are  not  very 
interesting  to  the  general  reader,  but  here,  on  a 
spot  where  barely  a  half-dozen  years  ago  was  un- 
broken forest,  and  where  charred  stumps  and  brakes 
and  brambles  still  cover  unoccupied  lots,  statistics 


TACOMA.  153 

stare  you  in  the  face  in  such  a  potential  way  there  is 
no  escaping  them. 

I  like  this  juxtaposition  of  the  triumphs  of  skill 
and  enterprise  with  the  primeval  forest.  There  is  no 
fascination  about  a  new  town  on  a  grassless,  treeless 
plain,  no  matter  how  elegant  its  buildings  or  how 
enterprising  its  citizens ;  but  here,  where  the  flavor 
of  the  wilderness  pervades  everything,  and  where, 
from  a  hotel  costing  two  hundred  thousand  dollars, 
furnished  with  all  the  luxurious  appliances  of  modern 
art,  you  may  look  out  upon  — 

"  Cedar  and  pine  and  fir,     *    *    *    * 
A  sylvan  scene,  and  as  the  ranks  ascend 
Shade  above  shade,  a  woody  theatre 
Of  stateliest  view," 

there  is  a  subtile  charm  that  stirs  the  heart  and 
quickens  the  pulses,  till  we  find  ourselves  in  harmony 
with  the  bustle  and  energy  and  dauntless  courage 
which  make  possible  here  achievements  whose  mag- 
nitude staggers  the  cautious  conservatism  of  the  East. 

The  cheap  wooden  houses  usually  found  in  a  new 
town  are  here  conspicuous  by  their  absence.  The 
Land  Company,  I  am  told,  sell  no  lots  except  on 
condition  that  the  purchaser  shall  put  up  a  building 
within  three  years,  to  cost  not  less  than  a  stipulated 
sum,  by  which  arrangement  all  dwellings  are  built 
for  permanancy  and  not  to  serve  a  temporary  purpose. 

The  St.  Luke's  Episcopal  church,  a  handsome 
structure  of  stone,  was  the  gift  of  C.  B.  Wright  of 
11 


154  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Philadelphia,  president  of  the  Tacoma  Land  Com- 
pany, a  memorial  to  his  deceased  wife  and  daughter  ; 
and  the  town  is  indebted  to  the  same  liberal  source 
for  the  elegant  "Annie  Wright  Ladies'  Seminary." 

The  harbor  of  Commencement  Bay  is  one  of  the 
best  in  the  world,  the  waters  so  deep  that  vessels  of 
the  heaviest  draught  can  ride  to  its  piers ;  indeed, 
the  chief  difficulty  is  that  the  waters  are  too  deep  for 
anchorage.  To  remedy  this  a  project  is  already  ini- 
tiated to  deepen  the  channel  of  the  Puyallup  river  at 
its  mouth,  so  that  the  shipping  may  anchor  there. 

The  upper  portion  of  the  town  commands  a  mag- 
nificent prospect,  —  the  beautiful  bay  with  its  timber 
fringed  shores,  the  fertile  Puyallup  valley,  the  green 
hills,  the  distant  blue  mountains,  and,  crowning  all, 
the  eternal  snows  of  Mt.  Tacoma,  —  there  is  nothing 
wanting  to  the  completeness  of  the  landscape.  What 
Mt.  Hood  is  to  Portland,  Mt.  Tacoma  is  to  this 
city,  —  its  glory  and  pride.  Any  description  of  the 
place  which  should  not  include  this  kingly  height 
would  be  like  the  play  of  "  Hamlet  "  with  the  mel- 
ancholy prince  omitted.  About  forty  miles  distant, 
with  nothing  to  obstruct  the  view,  the  low  range  of 
foot-hills  appearing  but  as  the  wall  inclosing  the 
grounds  from  which  rises  some  lofty  monument,  this 
majestic  peak  rears  its  head  against  the  sky  14,444 
feet,  snow-covered  to  its  feet.  More  massive  than 
Mt.  Hood,  it  resembles  that  somewhat  in  general 


MOUNT    TACOMA.  155 

outline,  although  the  summit  is  less  sharp.  On  its 
sides  are  eight  living  glaciers,  nourishing  as  many 
streams,  which  ultimately  find  their  way  to  the  ocean. 
It  was  probably  from  this  fact  that  the  name  "  nour- 
ishing breast "  was  given  it.  There  is  a  horseback 
trail  to  the  height  of  11,000  feet,  and  the  ascent  from 
that  point  to  the  summit  has  several  times  been  made. 
Near  the  summit  there  is  a  crater  where  it  is  still  so 
warm  that  one  may  remain  there  all  night  without 
discomfort  with  no  other  covering  than  a  blanket. 
At  the  height  of  11,000  feet,  where  was  formerly  a 
crater,  is  now  a  lake,  and  a  green  meadow  carpeted 
with  flowers,  —  evidence  that  the  internal  fires  of  the 
volcano  are  not  yet  wholly  extinct. 

But  a  few  hundred  feet  less  lofty  than  Mont  Blanc, 
with  no  other  high  mountains  intervening  to  obstruct 
the  vision  as  far  as  the  eye  can  reach,  what  a  sublime 
and  magnificent  panorama  must  be  unfolded  to  those 
who  scale  that  shining  height !  It  may  yet  be,  and 
at  no  very  distant  day,  that  the  aspiring  mountaineer 
will  count  it  a  prouder  distinction  to  have  climbed 
the  lofty  glaciers  of  Tacoma  than  to  have  scaled  the 
slippery  Mer  de  Glace,  and  that  tourists  will  come 
hither  from  all  parts  of  the  world  as  they  now  flock 
to  the  Alps  and  the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean. 
In  contemplating  this  glorious  peak  and  the  fair  land 
beneath,  with  its  woods  and  waters  and  fertile  valleys, 
and  rich  mineral  treasures  hid  below  the  surface,  I 


156  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

seem  to  hear  the  words  of  ' '  Concord  Bridge  ' '  as 
voiced  by  "  Hosea  Biglow:" 

"  I  feel  my  spirit  swellin'  with  a  cry 
That  seems  to  say,    'Break  forth  and  prophesy,' 

This  land  of  our'n  I  tell  ye's  got  to  be 
A  better  country  than  man  ever  see  ;  " 

and  in  imagination  I  stand  upon  the  exalted  summit 
and  look  down  upon  populous  cities  and  cultivated 
fields  and  happy  homes  where  now  is  virgin  wilder- 
ness, and  see  the  beautiful  shores  of  Puget  Sound 
adorned  with  lovely  villas  or  lined  with  busy  towns, 
the  abodes  of  millions  of  free  and  prosperous 
people  —  yet  to  be. 

There  are  probably  other  new  western  towns  that 
have  grown  up  as  rapidly  as  Tacoma,  possibly  there 
are  some  that  rival  it  in  beauty  of  situation,  but  in 
one  thing  this  town  stands  preeminent,  —  nowhere 
else  is  there  another  "Tacoma"  hotel,  no  other 
hostelry  has  such  a  host  as  Landlord  Tyler.  "The 
Tacoma  ' '  is  the  property  of  the  Tacoma  Land  Com- 
pany, its  foundations  having  been  laid  last  fall.  The 
father  of  the  enterprise  was  Gen.  Sprague,  who  occu- 
pies a  handsome  residence  near  the  hotel.  He  sug- 
gested to  Mr.  C.  B.  Wright,  the  president  of  the  Land 
Company,  that  a  hotel  costing  about  thirty  thou- 
sand dollars  would  be  a  good  thing  to  have.  The 
result  is  a  building  on  which  over  two  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars  has  been  expended  in  construction  and 
thirty  thousand  dollars  already  invested  in  furniture. 
The  house  is  not  yet  completed,  and  our  party  were 


OPENING    A    HOTEL.  157 

the  first  guests  entertained  there.  It  was  about  sun- 
set of  June  26  when  we  arrived,  on  our  return  trip 
through  Puget  Sound,  and,  although  we  had  been 
informed  that  we  were  to  "open"  a  new  hotel,  we 
had  no  expectations  beyond  the  fact  that  everything 
would  be  new  and  clean.  The  hotel  is  a  palatial- 
looking  building  of  handsome  architectural  propor- 
tions, situated  on  the  edge  of  a  bluff  one  hundred 
feet  above  the  water  at  the  head  of  Commencement 
Bay,  at  the  point  where  the  Puyallup  river  debouches 
into  it.  The  walls  are  of  brick  covered  with  mastic. 
The  location  is  a  beautiful  one,  the  prospect  on  the 
water  side  taking  in  the  bay  and  opposite  shores  and  a 
long  stretch  of  landscape  over  forest  and  hill  to  the 
royal  Tacoma  crowned  with  perennial  snows. 

The  interior  is  beautifully  finished  in  redwood,  and 
the  furniture  is  of  the  same  handsome  material.  We 
found  the  entrances  to  our  rooms  guarded  by  blanket 
portieres,  the  doors  designed  for  them  having  been 
detained  on  a  vessel  in  quarantine  in  the  sound  off 
Victoria.  There  was  a  sense  of  freedom  and  unre- 
straint in  this  big,  grand  house  in  its  unfinished  con- 
dition, where  the  noise  of  hammer  and  saw  was  still 
to  be  heard,  that  could  not  have  existed  if  every- 
thing had  been  complete.  I  wish  I  could  convey  a 
sense  of  the  delightful  surprise,  the  infectious  joy,  the 
unchecked  enthusiasm  that  animated  us  as  we  took 
in  our  surroundings  and  entered  our  names  upon  the 
"bran  new"  register,  or  the  almost  hilarious  mirth 
with  which  this  decorous  party  from  the  oldest  and 


158  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

easternmost  part  of  the  country  celebrated  the  "house- 
warming  ' '  of  this  new  hotel  in  the  newest  town  on 
this  far  away  western  coast.  It  was  such  a  grand 
thing  to  have  the  big  house  all  to  ourselves,  —  for 
this  Raymond  Excursion  Party  is  a  harmonious,  a 
united  party,  —  not  divided  into  cliques  or  sets, — 
and  Landlord  Tyler  bade  us  consider  everything 
as  our  own. 

I  must  not  omit  mention  of  the  beautiful  little 
dining-room,  just  large  enough  to  give  ample  accom- 
modations to  all  our  party,  with  its  carved  chimney- 
piece  and  tiled  fire-place,  its  tables  covered  with 
the  finest  and  whitest  of  damask  and  shining  with 
the  brightest  of  new  silver,  the  delicate  china,  the 
skilled  and  attentive  waiters,  the  delicious  viands 
served  in  the  daintiest  and  most  appetizing  way,  and 
the  lovely  bouquet  at  each  plate  on  the  dinner 
table,  — we  almost  believed  ourselves  to  be  the  hon- 
ored guests  at  a  festive  banquet  rather  than  patrons 
of  a  public  inn.  It  is  plain  the  managers  knew  their 
man  when  they  sent  W.  D.  Tyler  here  from  Pennsyl- 
vania to  open  this  hotel ;  but  —  to  his  everlasting  honor 
be  it  said  —  he  refused  to  come  except  on  condition 
that  the  hotel  should  have  no  public  bar;  and  thus 
the  big  room  across  the  eastern  end,  which  was  to 
have  been  a  billiard  and  bar  room,  is  now  being  finished 
off  for  a  parlor. 

The  morning  following  our  arrival  was  rainy,  but 
the  big  hotel  office,  although  not  quite  completed, 


INDIAN    SCHOOL.  159 

was  cheerful  with  a  fire-place  at  either  end,  where  the 
bright  wood  fires  crackled  and  blazed,  and  no  clouds 
or  dampness  could  check  the  ardor  of  our  enjoyment. 
Here  various  citizens  called  upon  several  members  of 
the  party.  Among  them  was  one  whom  possibly 
some  Manchester  readers  may  remember,  Mr.  Edward 
N.  Fuller,  who  edited  the  MIRROR  in  1850.  Mr. 
Fuller  is  still  in  the  editorial  harness,  being  connected 
with  the  Tacoma  Daily  News,  and  has  followed  the 
fortunes  of  various  papers  in  the  West  since  he  left 
New  Hampshire,  in  Chicago,  Salt  Lake  City  and 
other  places.  The  News  is  a  lively  little  sheet,  but 
not  so  small  as  were  those  earliest  editions  of  the 
MIRROR.  There  is  another  daily  published  here,  the 
Ledger,  whose  editor  was  also  among  the  callers  ;  and 
Mr.  Richard  Bradley,  clerk  of  the  Nisqually  and 
Skokomish  Indian  Agency,  with  headquarters  on  the 
Puyallup  Reservation,  a  native  of  New  England,  was 
glad  to  greet  citizens  from  his  old  home.  The 
Puyallup  Reservation  is  only  three  or  four  miles  from 
Tacoma,  and  an  Indian  school  is  in  operation  there 
under  the  auspices  of  the  government.  During  the 
afternoon  a  large  number  of  our  party  drove  over  to 
visit  this  Indian  school,  There  are  seventy-five  boys 
and  girls  from  six  or  seven  years  to  adult  age,  who 
are  boarded,  clothed,  educated  and  taught  to  work 
here.  This  was  the  last  day  of  school  before  vaca- 
tion, which  the  children  were  to  spend  with  their 
parents.  We  listened  to  reading,  singing  and 


l6o  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

answers  to  questions  in  geography.  I  am  told  by 
the  teacher  that  they  learn  quite  readily  anything 
which  only  requires  memorizing,  but  that  arithme- 
tic they  acquire  slowly.  The  writing-books  were 
remarkable  for  the  uniform  excellence  of  the  pen- 
manship. Few  white  children,  with  the  same  amount 
of  practice,  could  write  so  well.  Considering  the 
fact  that  most  of  these  children  do  not  understand  a 
word  of  English  when  they  come  here,  their  acquire- 
ments seem  surprising.  Their  parents  let  them  come 
very  readily  now,  but  when  the  school  was  first 
established  it  "  was  almost  necessary  to  lasso  them  to 
secure  them,"  as  the  superintendent  expressed  it. 
In  the  afternoons  the  older  boys  are  taken  into  the 
fields  or  shops  to  work,  some  of  them  receiving  five 
dollars  a  month  as  apprentices,  and  the  girls  are 
taught  to  sew  and  do  housework.  Everything  is 
systematic  and  orderly  about  the  establishment.  As 
soon  as  the  school  closed  the  girls  at  once  repaired 
to  the  sewing-room,  and  when  we  looked  in  upon 
them  they  were  busily  darning  stockings  and  scarcely 
glanced  at  us. 

The  Puyallup  Reservation  comprises  eighteen 
thousand  acres,  occupied  by  five  hundred  and  sixty 
Indians.  These  Indians  cultivate  not  only  grain  and 
field  crops,  but  some  of  them  have  gone  into  gar- 
dening. One  of  them  raised  and  sold  fifty  dollars' 
worth  of  strawberries  the  present  season.  They 
build  their  own  houses,  some  of  them  of  two 


PUYALLUP    VALLEY.  l6l 

stories,  open  and  take  care  of  their  own  roads,  and 
are  generally  progressing. 

This  Puyallup  valley  is  one  of  the  most  fertile  in 
the  world.  It  is  said  that  it  will  produce  four  tons 
of  hay  to  the  acre.  The  principal  crop  of  the  farm- 
ers here  is  hops,  and  while  eight  hundred  pounds  to 
the  acre  is  considered  a  good  yield  in  New  York,  this 
rich  soil  produces  sixteen  hundred  to  three  thousand 
pounds  per  acre.  A  branch  of  the  Northern  Pacific 
extends  up  the  Puyallup  valley  thirty-three  miles  to 
the  rich  coal  fields  of  that  region,  from  which  more 
than  one  hundred  and  sixty-eight  thousand  tons  of 
coal  were  forwarded  to  the  city  for  shipment  last  year. 
This  railroad  goes  within  a  few  miles  of  Mt.  Tacoma, 
an  advantage  likely  some  day  to  be  appreciated  by 
tourists. 

The  second  evening  of  our  stay  at  Tacoma,  our 
party  organized  and  adopted  resolutions  expressive 
of  the  entire  satisfaction  with  the  manner  in  which 
the  conductor,  Mr.  Luther  L.  Holden,  had  performed 
his  duties,  of  appreciation  of  his  unfailing  courtesy 
and  unceasing  efforts  to  promote  the  comfort  and 
pleasure  of  those  in  his  charge,  and  a  commendation 
of  Raymond  Excursion  arrangements  in  general  and 
this  one  in  every  particular.  A  resolution  of  thanks 
to  Landlord  Tyler  for  the  handsome  manner  in  which 
we  were  entertained  was  also  adopted.  On  the  same 
occasion  a  little  purse  of  gold  was  presented  Mrs. 
Holden  as  a  testimonial  of  our  appreciation  of  her 


1 62  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

uniform  kindness  and  ever  ready  and  cheerful  help- 
fulness to  all  members  of  the  party. 

We  left  Tacoma  the  following  morning  to  return 
to  Portland,  carrying  only  happy,  joyous  memories 
of  our  stay  here,  in  spite  of  unpropitious  weather  (it 
was  only  on  the  morning  of  our  departure  that  we 
had  a  full  view  of  Mt.  Tacoma),  and  we  are  sure  that 
for  our  happiness  we  are  largely  indebted  to  the  efforts 
of  the  man  who  "  knows  how  to  keep  a  hotel." 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE     WILLAMETTE      VALLEY. SALEM. —  THE      MIDDLE 

COLUMBIA. 

ON  the  morning  of  June  29  we  took  train  on  the 
Oregon  &  California  Railroad  at  East  Portland 
for  a  trip  up  the  Willamette  valley.  This  valley  is 
the  oldest  settled  portion  of  Oregon  and  is  famous 
for  its  fertility  and  beauty.  Wheat  is  the  leading 
crop,  and  is  produced  not  only  in  abundant  quantity 
year  after  year  on  the  same  soil,  but  it  is  so  superior 
in  quality  as  to  command  a  higher  price  than  almost 
any  other. 

The  Willamette  valley  has  an  average  width  of 
about  fifty  miles  between  the  Cascade  and  Coast 
ranges,  and  extends  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles 
southward  from  the  Columbia  river.  There  is  a  rail- 
road on  each  side  of  the  river  through  this  valley, 
but  our  destination  is  Salem,  the  capital  of  the  state, 
and  we  take  the  east  side.  For  the  first  eighteen 
miles  our  road  is  near  the  bank  of  the  stream,  till  we 
reach  the  Willamette  Falls  at  Oregon  City.  These 
falls  are  justly  famed  for  their  beauty.  The  vertical 
fall  is  only  about  thirty  feet,  but,  including  the  rapids 
above  and  below,  the  descent  is  one  hundred  feet. 
Here  is  water-power  enough,  as  some  one  expressed 


164  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

it,  "  to  turn  the  mills  of  the  gods."  There  are  locks 
at  the  falls  so  as  to  admit  of  navigation  to  the  Upper 
Willamette.  Oregon  City  is  pleasantly  situated,  has 
some  two  thousand  inhabitants,  a  large  woolen-mill, 
two  flour-mills  and  a  saw-mill. 

Above  the  falls  the  river  and  railroad  part  company, 
and  we  do  not  see  the  stream  again  till  we  get  to  Salem, 
fifty-three  miles  from  Portland.  A  large  portion 
of  the  valley  through  which  we  pass  is  level  prairie, 
and  there  are  no  towns  of  any  importance  between 
Oregon  City  and  Salem,  and  we  miss  the  frequent 
farm-houses  that  we  should  naturally  expect  to  see 
in  so  fertile  a  country.  It  seems  a  pity  that  farms 
should  be  on  so  large  a  scale  as  to  make  agricultural 
neighborhoods  impossible.  The  large  fields  of  ripen- 
ing grain  are  a  pleasant  sight.  No  corn  is  grown 
here,  the  nights  being  too  cool  for  that  heat-loving 
plant.  Both  ranges  of  mountains  are  visible  from 
the  train,  and  we  get  views  of  Mts.  Hood,  St.  Helen's, 
Tacoma,  Jefferson  and  Adams  on  the  way.  Our  train 
carried  us  as  far  as  Albany,  some  twenty  miles  from 
Salem,  but  we  made  no  stay  there. 

Salem,  the  capital  city  of  Oregon,  was  founded  in 
1842,  and  was  first  called  Chemeketa,  from  the  name 
of  a  tribe  of  Indians  who  once  had  their  village 
near  its  site,  the  word  meaning  "place  of  rest." 
The  nanie  was  changed  through  the  .influence  of  a 
gentleman  from  Salem,  Mass.  The  town .  is  pleas- 
antly situated  on  the  east  bank  .of  the  Willamette, 


SALEM.  165 

near  the  point  where  Mill  creek  unites  with  the  river. 
This  creek  affords  a  superior  water-power  which  is 
utilized  by  flouring-mills,  saw  and  grist  mills,  a  woolen 
mill  and  other  manufacturing  industries.  The  site 
of  the  town  is,  for  the  most  part,  a  level  prairie ;  the 
streets  broad,  clean  and  beautifully  shaded  with  maple 
and  locust  trees,  the  houses  having  a  tidy,  respectable, 
"well-to-do"  appearance.  The  state  capitol,  which 
was  begun  in  1873,  *s  not  vet  completed,  but  has 
already  cost  $230,000.  It  will  be  an  elegant  structure 
when  finished.  The  view  from  the  roof  of  the  capitol 
is  very  fine,  including  the  mountains  in  the  distance, 
the  nearer  wheat-clad  hills,  forests  and  farms,  the 
broad,  curving  Willamette,  the  state  penitentiary  and 
elegant  new  insane  asylum  just  outside  the  city  limits, 
and  the  city  itself  at  our  feet.  By  the  courtesy  of  the 
assistant  secretary  of  state  we  were  shown  some  of 
the  curiosities  in  the  state  archives.  Among  these 
were  the  medal  presented  by  the  merchants  of  Boston 
to  Capt.  Robert  Gray,  the  commander  of  the  first 
ship  that  ever  ascended  the  Columbia  river,  and  the 
tomahawk  with  which  Dr.  Whitman,  the  Methodist 
missionary,  was  killed. 

The  Methodists  are  the  leading  denomination  in 
Oregon,  and  the  Willamette  University  in  Salem,  a 
very  flourishing  educational  institution,  is  under  their 
auspices.  There  are  eleven  churches  in  Salem,  which 
is  a  pretty  liberal  allowance  for  a  town  of  six  thousand 
inhabitants.  The  court-house  is  a  handsome  build- 


1 66  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

ing,  one  of  the  finest  on  the  Pacific  coast.  The 
Chemeketa  Hotel,  where  we  found  an  excellent  dinner, 
cost  $150,000,  and  is  probably  the  largest  in  Oregon. 
Several  citizens  came  to  meet  the  "party  from  the 
East,"  and  put  us  under  obligations  for  kindly 
courtesies. 

The  Willamette  valley  is  truly  a  favored  land.  It 
is  said  that  the  crops  there  never  fail.  If  the  winter 
rains  are  less  abundant  than  usual  so  as  to  endanger 
the  crops  by  a  summer  drought,  Providence  kindly 
permits  a  fire  to  be  started  in  the  woods,  by  which 
the  air  is  filled  with  smoke,  and  thus  the  scorching 
rays  of  the  sun  are  excluded,  and  Earth  yields  her 
increase  in  the  regular  way. 

Tuesday  morning,  July  i,  we  started  on  our  home- 
ward journey  from  Portland,  taking  the  steamer  Dixi 
Thompson  for  the  voyage  up  the  Columbia  river  as 
far  as  the  Cascades.  A  few  miles  above  the  junction 
of  the  Willamette  we  reach  Vancouver,  a  very  pretty 
village  on  the  Washington  shore,  where  was  formerly 
Fort  Vancouver,  and  where  is  now  an  important  mili- 
tary post.  Two  ladies  of  our  party  were  left  here, 
the  guests  of  Gen.  Miles,  commander  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  the  Columbia. 

A  dozen  miles  farther  on  is  another  small  town, 
Washougal.  The  river  is  twenty  feet  higher  than 
usual  and  the  banks  are  in  some  places  overflowed. 
A  barn  near  Washougal  appears  to  be  a  good  many 
yards  from  land.  Up  to  this  point  the  shores  are 


THE    COLUMBIA    RIVER.  167 

low  or  gradually  sloping,  particularly  the  north  bank, 
but  we  are  now  approaching  the  heart  of  the  Cascade 
Range  —  and  scenery  which  has  no  counterpart  in  the 
known  world.  The  shores  become  precipitous  and 
often  rise  to  a  great  height.  There  are  several  water- 
falls on  the  south  side.  The  Multnomah  in  two 
plunges  falls  eight  hundred  feet.  The  Oneonta, 
another  beautiful  fall,  is  nearly  as  high.  There  are 
curious  rock  formations  along  the  shores.  Rooster 
Rock  projects  from  the  south  bank,  a  tall  pillar, 
several  hundred  feet  in  height,  a  gigantic  perch  for  a 
giant  chanticleer.  Perhaps  the  most  remarkable  of 
these  rocks  is  Cape  Horn,  on  the  north  bank.  The 
mountain  extends  out  into  the  water  forming  a  prom- 
ontory, the  almost  vertical  walls  of  which  rise  in 
fluted  columns  several  hundred  feet,  with  conical 
summits.  These  walls  are  basaltic  rock,  the  brown- 
ish red  coloring  being  particularly  pleasing  to  the 
eye.  In  some  places  the  rocks  are  gay  with  a  covering 
of  tiny  flowers  growing  from  the  crevices.  On  the 
same  side  of  the  river  as  Cape  Horn,  a  prominent 
object  for  a  long  distance  is  Castle  Rock,  an  isolated 
mountain  rising  from  the  water  one  thousand  feet 
in  height. 

The  scenery  is  constantly  changing,  new  objects 
of  interest  being  continually  brought  to  view,  and 
there  is  no  rest  for  the  eyes.  Occasionally  trains  on 
the  Oregon  &  Navigation  Company's  Railroad  are 
seen  creeping  along  the  narrow  shelf  of  shore  on  the 


1 68  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Oregon  side,  or  plunging  into  the  numerous  tunnels 
through  the  rocks  where  no  other  pathway  could  be 
found.  In  some  places  the  workmen  who  did  the 
blasting  for  the  railroad  had  to  be  let  down  from  the 
top  of  the  cliff  with  ropes. 

A  short  distance  above  Castle  Rock,  sixty-two  miles 
from  Portland,  we  reach  the  Cascades,  where  we  dis- 
embark and  take  train  on  a  narrow-gauge  track  for  a 
portage  of  six  miles  around  the  rapids.  The  moun- 
tains take  their  name  from  these  cascades,  which 
resemble  somewhat  the  rapids  above  Niagara  Falls, 
the  water  rushing  over  its  bed  with  tremendous  force. 
The  government  has  commenced  the  building  of  a 
canal  and  locks  around  the  Cascades.  There  are 
two  series  of  rapids  called  the  Upper  and  Lower  Casr 
cades,  the  former  being  the  most  tumultuous.  Having 
passed  the  Upper  Cascades  we  embark  on  the  Harvest 
Queen  for  the  remainder  of  the  voyage  up  the  river 
to  the  Dalles,  this  part  of  the  course  being  what  is 
generally  termed  the  Middle  Columbia.  The  scenery, 
although  differing  somewhat  from  that  below  the 
Cascades,  continues  unique  and  remarkably  pictur- 
esque. The  rock  formations  are  altogether  wonderful. 
Sometimes  the  banks  are  terraced  slopes  with  from 
three  to  five  terraces  of  an  apparent  equal  height,  of 
from  fifty  to  a  hundred  feet.  Sometimes  there  are 
palisades  resembling  those  on  the  Hudson.  There 
are  rocks  formed  like  church  towers,  others  are  pinna- 
cles, or  huge  cones.  In  some  places  the  bases  of 


THE    MIDDLE    COLUMBIA.  169 

these  rocks  are  worn  by  the  action  of  the  water  into 
caves  and  grottoes  of  fantastic  forms.  Some  of  the 
rocks  rise  a  thousand  feet  in  height,  and  everywhere 
there  is  a  beautiful  coloring  peculiar  to  this  scenery. 
Geologists  say  that  nowhere  else  in  the  world  are  there 
so  wonderful  specimens  of  igneous  rock  as  are  seen 
in  this  furrow  through  the  Cascade  Range.  There 
is  said  to  be  a  sliding  mountain  about  three  miles 
from  the  Upper  Cascades.  This  mountain,  of  basalt, 
rests  upon  a  bed  of  conglomerate  with  sandstone 
substratum,  and  as  the  river  wears  away  the  bed,  the 
mass  trends  downward  towards  the  stream.  Two 
streams  flow  into  the  Columbia  between  the  Cascades 
and  the  Dalles,  Hood  river  on  the  south  side,  which 
has  its  source  in  the  perennial  snows  of  Mt.  Hood, 
and  the  White  Salmon  river,  which  rises  in  the  melt- 
ing snows  of  Mt.  Adams  on  the  north. 

It  was  about  five  o'clock  when  we  reached  Dalles 
City,  the  distance  from  Portland  being  one  hundred 
and  ten  miles.  The  weather,  except  in  the  morning 
when  the  sky  was  overcast,  was  beautiful,  leaving 
nothing  to  be  desired.  Not  a  mile  of  the  voyage  but 
had  its  own  distinctive  charm.  The  scenery,  if  less 
picturesquely  beautiful  than  that  of  Puget  Sound,  was 
unique  and  wonderful,  with  a  loveliness  all  its  own, 
and  the  day  was  one  of  such  thorough  delightfulness 
it  was  with  a  sigh  of  regret  that  we  prepared  to  leave 
the  boat  to  resume  our  journey  by  rail. 
12 


1 70  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

At  Dalles  City  is  the  first  opening  of  the  mountains 
sufficient  for  a  town,  for  at  least  seventy-five  miles 
of  our  course.  The  city  is  delightfully  situated  just 
below  the  Great  Dalles  of  the  Columbia  river.  Mts. 
Hood  and  Adams  are  both  visible  from  the  town  and 
in  all  directions  the  views  must  be  very  charming. 
The  Dalles  is  a  narrow  gorge  in  the  basaltic  rock 
about  a  mile  and  a  half  in  length,  the  narrowest  part 
only  sixty  feet  in  width,  through  which  the  whole 
volume  of  the  river  forces  its  way.  So  deep  is  the 
water  here  and  it  rushes  through  with  so  much  force 
that  it  seems  to  be  pushed  up  sideways,  if  I  may  so 
express  it,  or  like  the  Niagara  river  at  the  Whirlpool 
Rapids. 

The  wind  was  blowing  almost  a  gale  at  Dalles  City 
when  we  arrived,  and  clouds  of  dust  were  flying,  so 
that  few  cared  to  go  about  the  streets  during  the  half 
hour  we  waited  for  the  train  to  start.  We  follow  the 
bank  of  the  stream  till  we  reach  Wallula  Junction, 
where  we  take  the  Northern  Pacific  road.  The  face 
of  the  country  is  entirely  changed.  From  the  Dalles 
the  banks  of  the  river  are  low,  and  bristling  with 
black  fragments  of  lava  rock.  The  sand  is  heaped 
in  huge  piles  like  snow-drifts  for  miles  and  miles,  and 
if  we  venture  on  the  car-platform  our  eyes  and  ears 
are  filled  with  the  flying  sand.  We  get  occasional 
glimpses  of  Mt.  Hood,  no  longer  seen  toward  the 
east,  but  fast  receding  with  the  setting  sun,  and,  spite 
of  wind  and  dust,  we  watch  for  the  glorious  peak 


THE    LAST    LOOK.  1 71 

from  the  rear  platform,  sad  in  the  thought  that  when 
darkness  closes  in  we  shall  have  looked  for  the  last 
time  upon  its  majestic  form.  Farewell,  beautiful 
snow-clad  heights  !  Though  I  may  never  see  you 
more  with  mortal  vision,  ye  are  indelibly  photo- 
graphed on  memory's  tablets,  perennial  as  your  own 
eternal  snows. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

ON    THE    NORTHERN    PACIFIC   AND    UTAH    &   NORTHERN 
RAILROADS. BUTTE    CITY. 

WHEN  we  arose  Wednesday  morning,  July  2, 
we  found  ourselves  close  to  the  shore  of  Lake 
Colville,  a  placid  sheet  of  water  with  reedy  banks, 
which  lay  along  our  course  for  eight  miles.  Two 
miles  farther  ,on  we  reach  Sprague,  W.  T.,  the 
headquarters  of  the  Pend  d'Oreille  Division  of  the 
Northern  Pacific  Railroad.  During  the  night  we 
had  passed  through  an  almost  desert  region,  the 
road  having  been  built,  since  leaving  the  banks  of 
the  Columbia,  through  dried-up  water-courses  or 
coulees,  as  they  are  termed.  Sprague  has  a  popu- 
lation of  ten  or  twelve  hundred  people  where  in 
1 88 1  not  a  house  existed.  The  railroad-shops  fur- 
nish the  main  business,  while  the  surrounding  country 
comes  here  for  supplies.  Twenty-five  miles  east  of 
Sprague  is  Cheney,  a  town  named  in  honor  of  B.  P. 
Cheney  of  Boston.  An  academy  here,  which  has 
two  hundred  pupils,  was  the  gift  of  that  gentleman. 
Spokane  Falls,  the  next  town  reached,  is  a  thriv- 
ing place  antedating  the  railroad,  whose  magnificent 
water-power  is  utilized  in  operating  flour-mills,  saw- 
mills and  other  factories.  The  falls  are  but  a  short 


i 

174  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

distance  from  the  station,  and  our  train  stopped 
long  enough  for  us  to  go  to  see  them.  The  Spokane 
river,  which  here  makes  a  descent  of  one  hundred  and 
sixty  feet  in  a  series  of  falls,  is  the  outlet  of  Lake  Coeur 
d'Alene  (a  large  sheet  of  water  to  the  southeast) 
and  is  tributary  to  the  Columbia.  The  rock  form- 
ation is  all  basaltic  or  volcanic  here,  and  ragged, 
rocky  islands,  their  purplish  brown  color  in  agreeable 
contrast  to  the  white  foam  of  the  cataract,  divide  the 
falling  waters  into  several  streams  which  dash  madly 
down  their  rocky  beds,  then,  reunited,  the  rushing 
torrent  makes  a  final  plunge  of  sixty-five  feet,  be-, 
tween  the  high  and  rock-bound  shores.  It  is  a 
beautiful  fall  and  the  surrounding  scenery  is  very 
pleasing.  A  few  miles  north  of  here  are  the  famous 
"  Medical  Lakes,"  celebrated  for  their  cure  of  rheu- 
matism and  kindred  diseases.  Nineteen  miles  east  of 
Spokane  we  reach  the  boundary  line  of  Idaho.  This 
territory  is  but  a  narrow  strip  in  its  northern  portion, 
seventy-eight  miles  in  width,  but  abounds  in  pictur- 
esque and  beautiful  scenery.  A  portion  of  the  way 
we  pass  through  forests  of  tall  pines  and  firs,  not  as 
large  as  those  in  the  Sierra  Nevada  and  Cascade 
mountains,  but  scarcely  less  lofty  in  height.  Many 
charred  and  blackened  trunks  mark  the  devastation 
of  forest  fires.  We  are  in  the  Coeur  d'Alene  Moun- 
tain region,  the  discovery  of  whose  mines  caused 
great  excitement  last  year. 

Those   who    have    traced    out    the    course    of  the 
Northern   Pacific    Railroad    on   the    map   will    have 


LAKE    PEND    D  OREILLE.  175 

observed,  about  midway  between  the  east  and  west 
'boundaries  of  northern  Idaho,  a  body  of  water  bear- 
ing the  name  of  Lake  Pend  d'Oreille.  Why  it  was 
called  an  "Ear-drop"  I  am  unable  to  ascertain  — 
possibly  there  was  a  fancied  resemblance  in  form  to 
a  lady's  ear-jewel  as  outlined  on  the  map.  The  lake 
is  sixty  miles  long  and  about  fifteen  miles  wide,  and 
the  railroad  makes  quite  a  detour  to  the  northward 
to  pass  around  it,  keeping  along  its  shores  for  several 
miles,  affording  the  traveler  visions  of  marvelous 
beauty  and  grandeur,  scarcely  to  be  surpassed  by  any 
lake  scenery  in  the  world.  Yes,  here  in  the  heart  of 
these  Cceur  d'Alene  hills,  nestling  close  up  to  the 
mountain  walls,  there  lies  a  beautiful  gem,  in  the 
light  of  whose  peerless  setting  even  our  own  Winni- 
pesaukee  pales  and  the  luster  of  Lake  George  is 
dimmed.  The  shores  of  Lake  George  are  in  some 
portions  equally  bold,  but  here  the  expanse  of  water 
is  much  greater,  and  the  mountain  walls  are  loftier 
and  extend,  peak  beyond  peak,  for  many  miles,  blue 
as  the  sky  in  the  far  distance,  opening  up  lovely  vis- 
tas which  disappear  all  too  soon  as  our  train  speeds 
along.  Then  the  solitude  of  the  lake  gives  it  an 
additional  charm  for  me.  No  villages,  no  summer 
cottages,  no  "'camp-grounds"  disturb  the  repose  of 
these  timber-fringed  shores,  and  the  only  living  ob- 
jects we  saw  were  a  couple  of  Indians  paddling  along 
the  glassy  surface  in  a  bark  canoe.  A  steamboat  has 
been  put  upon  the  lake,  but  it  is  not  now  in  use. 


I  76  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Clarke's  Fork  of  the  Columbia  river  passes  through 
Lake  Pend  d'Oreille,  and  the  railroad  crosses  the 
head  of  the  lake  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  on  a 
trestle  more  than  a  mile  in  length. 

Our  road  lies  along  Clarke's  Fork  now  for  a  long 
distance,  through  a  country  of  wild  and  beautiful 
scenery,  but  there  are  very  few  settlements  as  yet. 
There  are  numerous  Chinese  graves  with  their  little 
wooden  inclosures  all  along  the  wayside.  It  is  said 
that  five  thousand  of  these  Celestials  perished  during 
the  construction  of  the  road.  We  cross  the  bound- 
ary line  of  Idaho  and  Montana  near  Clarke's  Fork 
Station.  Montana  seems  to  be  the  wonderland  of 
the  continent.  Little  considered  until  recently,  ex- 
cept as  to  its  mines,  it  is  now  known  to  be  not  only 
rich  in  mineral  treasures,  but  to  possess  the  more 
enduring  wealth  of  innumerable  valleys  of  unsur- 
passed fertility,  vast  forest  tracts  of  the  finest  timber, 
immense  grazing  lands  in  the  mountain  districts,  two 
thousand  miles  of  navigable  waters,  and  some  of  the 
grandest  and  most  beautiful  natural  scenery.  The 
abundant  streams  and  waterfalls  render  irrigation 
practicable  and  easy  almost  everywhere.  The  two 
great  rivers  of  the  continent,  one  finding  its  way  to 
the  Atlantic  and  the  other  to  the  Pacific,  have  their 
sources  in  this  territory  so  near  together  that  the 
Missouri  and  the  Columbia  may  almost  be  said  to 
have  been  born  twins. 

At  Thompson's  Falls  on  Thompson  river,  a  tribu- 
tary of  Clarke's  Fork,  the  scenery  is  very  picturesque. 


PARADISE    VALLEY.  177 

The  mountains  form  a  vast  amphitheatre  with  a  glory 
of  green  and  purple  and  blue  coloring  in  the  after- 
noon light,  the  waters  of  the  river  dash  madly  along 
their  rocky  bed,  and  we  just  get  a  glimpse  of  the 
foaming  waterfall  through  the  trees  as  we  approach 
the  station.  A  few  miles  from  Thompson's  we  reach 
Horse  Plains,  a  circular  valley  surrounded  by  precip- 
itous mountains.  The  Flathead  Indian  Reservation 
extends  northward  from  here  along  the  Pend  d'Oreille 
and  Jocko  rivers  for  sixty  miles,  and  numerous 
wigwams  of  this  tribe  were  pitched  on  the  plains  near 
the  railroad.  Twenty-eight  miles  from  Thompson's 
we  reach  Paradise  Valley.  I  know  of  but  one  reason 
for  considering  this  appellation  a  misnomer  :  mosqui- 
toes do  not  belong  in  Paradise,  and  here  the  air  was 
black  with  them.  A  few  thousand  of  these,  of  ordi- 
nary voracity,  could  not  have  driven  me  from  my  seat 
on  the  rear  platform  ;  but  when  they  came  in  myriads, 
with  appetites  sharpened  by  long  fasting,  and  all 
joining  in  the  chorus  of — 

Fe,  fi,  fo,  fum, 

I  smell  the  blood  of  Yankees  —  yum ! 

there  was  too  much  "yum"  for  me,  and  I  beat  a 
hasty  retreat.  The  sun  had  now  set  and  daylight 
soon  gave  place  to  moonlight.  About  ten  o'clock 
we  enter  the  famous  Coriacan  Defile  and  cross  the 
Marent  Gulch  on  a  trestle  eight  hundred  and  sixty- 
six  feet  long  and  two  hundred  and  twenty-six  feet 
high.  "Jacob's  Ladder,"  on  Mt.  Washington, 


I  78  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

dwindles  besides  these  figures.  Missoula,  the  county 
seat  of  Missoula  county,  a  rapidly  growing  town  of 
about  a  thousand  inhabitants,  we  reach  about  n 
p.  M.,  and  when  we  awaken  next  morning  are  rest- 
ing at  Garrison,  seventy-two  miles  farther  on,  or 
rather  at  Blackfoot  Junction,  a  mile  east  of  Garrison, 
at  the  junction  of  the  Utah  &  Northern  with  the 
Northern  Pacific  road.  This  was  the  end  of  our 
journey  on  the  latter  road.  The  whole  of  it,  from 
Spokane  Falls  in  the  early  morning  till  we  left  Para- 
dise Valley  and  entered  into  darkness,  was  of  exceed- 
ing interest  and  pleasure.  The  weather  was  perfect 
and  the  scenery  beautiful  and  constantly  varying. 

We  found  the  depot  platform  covered  with  hoar 
frost  as  we  left  the  Northern  Pacific  cars  and  entered 
a  special  train  on  the  narrow-gauge  Utah  &  North- 
ern, bound  for  Ogden  on  the  Union  Pacific,  four 
hundred  and  fifty-four  miles  to  the  southward . 

Deer  Lodge  is  a  flourishing  mining  town,  eleven 
miles  from  Garrison,  in  the  beautiful  Deer  Lodge 
valley,  having  a  population  of  fifteen  hundred.  This 
town  and  valley  take  their  name  from  the  abundance 
of  deer  that  formerly  roamed  these  feeding  grounds, 
and  from  the  existence  of  a  geyser  cone,  or  mound, 
shaped  like  an  Indian  wigwam  or  lodge,  from  the 
summit  of  which  issues  a  boiling  mineral  spring ;  the 
steam  from  this  spring  resembles  the  smoke  that 
curls  from  an  Indian  lodge,  completing  the  simi- 
larity. The  mound,  which  is  thirty  feet  high  and 


DEER   LODGE   VALLEY.  179 

fifty  feet  in  diameter  at  the  base,  is  in  plain  view 
from  the  railroad,  and  but  a  few  miles  from  the 
village.  A  hotel,  bath-houses,  insane  asylum  and 
other  buildings  are  near  by.  Several  other  hot 
springs  issue  from  the  ground  near  the  base  of  the 
mound.  There  is  an  interesting  Indian  legend  con- 
nected with  this  elevated  spring.  The  pyramid  is 
said  to  have  sprung  up  in  a  single  night.  Two 
braves  loved  the  same  dusky  maiden  and  fought  a 
duel  here  on  her  account.  The  favored  one  was 
defeated  and  thrown  to  the  bottom  of  the  cavity ; 
whereupon  the  maiden  sent  up  a  heart-broken  prayer 
to  the  Great  Spirit  for  a  mound  to  cover  her  slain 
lover,  and  the  next  morning  this  pyramid  was 
revealed ;  and  "  not  all  the  lariats  of  the  tribe  tied 
together  could  reach  the  bottom  of  the  seething 
waters. ' ' 

Deer  Lodge  valley  is  apparently  from  ten  to 
twenty  miles  in  width,  inclosed  by  mountain  ranges 
on  either  hand,  and  extends  southward  for  fifty 
miles.  Powell  Mountain,  twenty  miles  west  «f  Deer 
Lodge  City,  the  most  prominent  object  in  the  land- 
scape, is  ten  thousand  feet  in  height.  The  valley  is 
green  and  fertile,  and  mainly  devoted  to  grazing. 
We  are  so  accustomed  to  think  of  this  part  of  the 
country  as  a  cold  northern  clime,  we  can  hardly 
realize  that  Deer  Lodge  is  on  exactly  the  same  par- 
allel of  latitude  as  Venice  and  the  "Bridge  of 
Sighs;  "  but  its  altitude  —  nearly  four  thousand  feet 


l8o  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

above  the  sea  —  accounts  for  July  frosts,  though  it  is 
said  the  mean  annual  temperature  of  this  village  is 
four  degrees  warmer  than  that  of  New  Hampshire, 
and  cattle  thrive  here  without  shelter  the  year  round. 
It  is  claimed  that  the  "Chinook,"  or  warm  wind 
from  the  Japan  equatorial  current,  does  not  spend  its 
force  west  of  the  Cascades,  but  sweeps  eastward  to 
the  Rockies,  modifying  the  climate  and  melting 
the  snows. 

At  Silver  Bow,  thirty-three  miles  south  of  Deer 
Lodge,  and  one  thousand  feet  higher,  we  take  a  branch 
road  of  seven  miles  to  visit  Butte  City,  the  chief 
mining  town  in  Montana,  and  location  of  the  most 
prolific  copper  mines  in  the  world.  The  site  of  Butte 
is  pretty  well  up  on  the  hill-sides,  about  five  thousand 
five  hundred  feet  above  the  sea,  and  we  had  a  carriage 
ride  of  a  mile  or  more  from  the  station  before  we 
reached  the  town.  After  doing  justice  to  an  excellent 
breakfast  at  one  of  the  Butte  hotels,  for  which  our 
ride  of  fifty  miles  since  rising  had  amply  prepared 
us,  we  scattered  about  to  visit  some  of  the  various 
mines.  The  mines  here  are  rich  in  silver  and  copper 
as  well  as  gold.  The  Anaconda  mine,  whose  ore  is 
chiefly  copper,  is  said  to  produce  annually  half  the 
total  yield  of  copper  in  the  »vorld.  Joining  a  party 
which  drifted  first  to  the  Colusa  copper  mine,  we 
were  shown  by  the  courteous  superintendent  all  about 
the  works,  crushing,  smelting,  etc.,  and  some  of  us 
went  down  the  shaft  into  the  mine.  First  donning 


IN    A    COPPER   MINE.  l8l 

miners'  waterproof  coats  and  caps,  we  are  so  disguised 
we  scarcely  know  each  other,  then,  clinging  close 
together  on  the  small  platform,  at  the  word  we  plunge 
quickly  into  the  darkness,  down,  down  through  four 
hundred  feet  of  solid  blackness.  At  the  bottom,  armed 
with  tallow  dips,  we  thread  our  way  —  taking  heed  to 
our  steps  lest  we  get  into  the  water  —  through  the  tun- 
nels, while  our  guide  talks  about  veins,  and  seams,  and 
ores,  and  rich  leads,  and  levels,  and  chutes,  and  free- 
milling,  and  copper  glance,  and  concentrating  ore, 
and  galena,  and  shafts,  and  so  on,  till  we  become 
very  wise  indeed. 

There  are  at  present  two  levels  in  this  mine,  with 
nineteen  hundred  feet  of  horizontal  excavations, 
and  a  shaft  is  being  sunk  two  hundred  feet  lower, 
when  other  horizontal  excavations  will  be  made. 
These  tunnels  are  about  eight  or  ten  feet  high  and 
four  feet  wide,  and  a  railroad  track  runs  through  them 
for  the  passage  of  the  cars  upon  which  the  ore  is 
loaded.  A  steam-engine  on  the  lower  level  is  con- 
stantly pumping  out  the  water  which  trickles  from  the 
various  excavations,  as  well  as  furnishing  power  to 
convey  the  ore  to  the  surface.  Following  the  ore  to 
the  smelting-works  we  see  that  which  is  of  low  grade 
first  "roasted"  in  piles  on  the  ground  to  expel  the 
sulphur  before  being  smelted  in  the  furnace ;  other 
ore  which  is  largely  mixed  with  quartz  is  crushed  fine 
in  the  mill,  then  the  ore  and  rock  separated  by  the 
action  of  the  water.  This  ore,  as  well  as  that  which 


1 82  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

comes  through  the  furnace,  is  bagged  and  sent  to 
Swansea,  in  Wales,  to  be  refined.  The  best  quality 
of  ore  is  sent  there  in  its  crude  state. 

I  don't  know  how  many  mines  there  are  in  Butte, 
but  their  name  is  Legion.  The  Alice,  one  of  the 
most  valuable  of  the  silver  mines,  was  visited  by  many 
of  our  party.  It  is  said  the  yield  of  all  the  Butte 
mines  in  1883  was  not  less  than  ten  million  dollars. 
There  are  placer  gold-diggings  near  Butte,  and  until 
1877  the  place  was  only  a  small  mining  camp.  Since 
then  it  has  grown  with  great  rapidity  and  there  are 
now  some  very  good  buildings,  a  nice  court-house, 
several  churches,  stores,  a  better  filled  bookstore  than 
can  be  found  in  the  East  outside  the  large  cities,  good 
hotels,  and  other  attributes  of  a  rising  town.  The 
high  altitude  of  this  town  gives  it  a  very  commanding 
prospect  of  extensive  mountain  scenery,  but  the  wind 
blew  and  the  sand  was  flying  in  clouds  while  we  were 
there,  a  condition  of  things  not  conducive  to  the 
enjoyment  of  the  landscape.  Preparations  for  the 
"Fourth"  were  in  progress,  rows  of  little  spruce 
trees  brought  from  the  mountains  being  arranged 
along  the  edge  of  the  sidewalks  to  simulate  the 
adornment  of  shade  trees,  since  the  growing  article 
was  impossible. 

Leaving  Butte  about  5  p.  M.,  we  returned  to  Silver 
Bow  and  resumed  our  train  to  Ogden.  Not  far  from 
Silver  Bow  we  pass  over  to  the  eastern  slope  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  at  a  height  of  five  thousand  nine 


A    GOOD-BYE.  183 

hundred  feet,  and  descend  through  Big  Hole  Canon 
amid  grand  and  impressive  scenery.  We  take  supper 
at  Melrose  about  sunset,  and  when  we  reach  Dillon, 
one  hundred  and  six  miles  south  of  Garrison,  we  bid 
good-bye  to  fourteen  of  our  party,  whom  we  are  to 
leave  during  the  night  at  Beaver  Canon  whence  they 
take  stages  for  the  Yellowstone  National  Park.  A 
circus  was  in  full  blast  under  a  canvas  near  the  station, 
but  Comrade  Bloomer's  fireworks,  touched  off  as  a 
valediction  while  our  train  waited  at  the  station,  made 
a  pretty  lively  circus,  too,  and  an  appropriate  prelude 
to  the  celebration  of  the  "Glorious  Fourth." 

During  the  night,  sixty-four  miles  beyond  Dillon, 
we  pass  to  the  Pacific  slope  of  the  Rocky.  Mountains 
again,  at  an  elevation  of  six  thousand  eight  hundred 
feet,  and  again  enter  Idaho  Territory.  The  Indian 
word  "  I-dah-ho  "  means  "the  mountain  where  the 
sunrises,"  and  our  "  I-dah-ho  "  on  the  morning  of 
the  Nation's  Anniversary  is  at  Eagle  Rock,  where  we 
cross  the  Snake  river,  the  same  stream  that  we  crossed 
on  the  Northern  Pacific  seven  hundred  and  twenty- 
eight  miles  away.  Lodges  of  the  Shoshone  Indians 
are  pitched  near  here.  We  keep  along  the  bank  of 
the  Snake  till  we  reach  Pocatello,  where  we  breakfast, 
and  then  ascend  the  winding  valley  of  the  Port  Neuf. 
There  are  patches  of  snow  gleaming  in  the  sunlight 
on  the  mountains,  and  although  for  awhile  our  course 
is  along  a  sage-bush  plain,  the  mountains  are  ever 
in  view,  drawing  our  gaze  and  thoughts  upward. 


184  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Seventy-seven  miles  north  of  Ogden  we  enter  Utah 
Territory  at  Franklin,  the  entrance  to  the  fanlous 
Cache  valley  with  an  elevation  of  four  thousand  five 
hundred  feet  above  the  sea.  This  valley  is  a  most 
wonderful  wheat-producing  country.  The  mountain 
walls  rise  abruptly  without  foot-hills  on  the  eastern 
side  of  the  valley,  three  thousand  feet  above  it,  an 
almost  unbroken  range  fifty  miles  in  length,  while  the 
valley  is  nearly  level.  Numerous  streams  have  their 
sources  in  these  mountains,  rendering  irrigation  easy 
and  practicable  all  over  the  valley,  which  averages  a 
dozen  miles  in  width,  —  in  one  portion  considerably 
wider  than  this.  The  Bear  river  is  the  most  impor- 
tant stream.  Logan  is  a  leading  Mormon  town  at 
the  entrance  of  the  widest  portion  of  the  valley,  and 
scattered  along  at  intervals  of  three  or  four  miles 
there  are  eight  other  towns,  all  in  full  view  of  the 
railroad  at  the  same  time.  The  road  marks  the  course 
of  the  letter  S  in  going  through  this  valley,  passing 
out  over  the  lower  hills  at  the  southwest. 

We  reached  Ogden  about  5  P.  M.,  getting  occa- 
sional glimpses  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  after  leaving 
the  Cache  valley,  and  fine  views  of  the  Wahsatch 
Mountains,  speckled  with  bright  patches  of  snow. 
Here  we  change  cars  for  the  Utah  Central  road,  which 
takes  us  to  Salt  Lake  City,  thirty-seven  miles  distant, 
where  we  shall  rest  among  the  "  Latter-Day  Saints." 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

SALT    LAKE    CITY. 

TT^HILE  waiting  for  the  departure  of  the  train 
y  V  from  Ogden,  our  tedium  was  relieved  and  the 
patriotic  spirit  which  was  our  birthright  given  expres- 
sion in  the  inspiring  strains  of  "Yankee  Doodle," 
performed  at  the  request  of  some  of  our  party  by  a 
band  which  had  accompanied  an  excursion  hither 
from  Salt  Lake.  We  never  could  realize  before 
what  a  big,  grand  country  this  is  whose  birthday  was 
being  celebrated.  The  route  from  Ogden  to  Salt 
Lake  City,  thirty-seven  miles,  is  full  of  interest,  —  a 
picturesque  landscape,  with  fertile  valleys  and  flowing 
streams,  broad  plains,  glimpses  of  the  Great  Salt 
Lake,  orchards  and  gardens  and  pleasant  little  Mor- 
mon settlements  where  the  children  —  Utah's  most 
prolific  crop  —  crowd  around  the  train  with  baskets 
of  berries  and  cherries  for  sale,  and  everywhere  the 
mountains  rising  up  grandly  in  the  background, 
their  summits  speckled  with  snowy  patches  gleaming 
in  the  sunlight. 

We  arrived  at  Salt  Lake  City  just  before  sunset 
and  were  transferred  to  the  Continental  Hotel  (a 
"  Gentile"  institution),  whose  shady  yard  and  cool- 
looking  piazza  were  very  inviting.  We  had  heard 

13 


1 86  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

that  this  city  of  Zion  had  been  made  to  blossom  as 
the  rose  where  once  was  only  a  sage-bush  plain,  and 
we  found  it  literally  true.  Admirably  situated  in  a 
basin  over  four  thousand  feet  above  the  sea,  on  a 
gentle  incline  sloping  away  to  the  southwest,  the 
lowest  portion  of  the  city  but  fifty  feet  higher  than 
the  lake  a  dozen  miles  distant,  shut  in  on  the  east 
and  north  by  the  Wahsatch  Mountains  which  rise 
abruptly  without  the  intervention  of  foot-hills,  while 
the  Oquirrh  range  rising  from  the  lake  shores  bounds 
the  horizon  on  the  south  and  west,  it  is  protected 
from  extremes  of  heat  and  cold  and  affords  the  best 
possible  conditions  for  irrigation  from  the  abundant 
streams  which  have  their  sources  in  the  canons  of  the 
Wahsatch.  These  streams  are  brought  down  through 
all  the  streets  in  crystal  rills,  making  green  and 
beautiful  where  else  would  be  only  a  barren  desert. 
Rows  of  shade  trees,  chiefly  locusts  and  cotton- 
woods,  adorn  every  street,  and  grassy  lawns  and 
fruit  and  flower  gardens  abound.  The  streets  are 
one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  broad,  and  the  city  is 
laid  out  in  squares  of  ten  acres  each.  One  not 
familiar  with  these  magnificent  distances  is  liable  to 
be  beguiled,  as  I  was,  into  walking  "  five  blocks  "  to 
see  the  fireworks,  only  to  find  that  five  blocks  meant 
nearly  a  mile. 

The  Mormon  church  buildings,  the  Tabernacle, 
the  Endowment  House,  the  new  Assembly  building 
and  the  unfinished  Temple,  are  all  in  one  square, 


THE    MORMON    TABERNACLE.  187 

which  is  inclosed  by  an  adobe  wall.  Most  readers 
are  familiar  with  pictures  of  the  Tabernacle  with  its 
curious  oval  shape  and  circular  roof,  the  largest  roof 
in  the  world  made  in  this  form ;  yet  neither  from  the 
pictures  nor  from  an  exterior  view  of  the  building 
itself  would  one  guess  that  it  is  seventy  feet  high. 
It  is  said  to  have  seating  capacity  for  twelve  thou- 
sand people,  but  I  should  think  half  that  number 
would  be  nearer  the  fact.  As  we  were  shown  about 
the  building,  observing  several  cisterns  or  barrels  of 
water  in  different  places  near  the  platform  where  the 
elders  sit,  one  of  the  visitors  inquired  if  the  water 
was  a  precaution  in  case  of  fire.  "No,  -we  use  that 
water  for  the  communion.  We  believe  pure  water 
is  better  than  impure  wine  for  the  sacraments,"  was 
the  janitor's  reply.  He  might  have  added  "and 
cheaper,"  for  when  it  is  considered  that  the  sacra- 
ments are  administered  every  Sunday  to  every  man, 
woman  and  child  in  the  congregation,  the  item  of 
expense  ;  if  wine  were  used,  would  be  no  insignificant 
one.  The  next  day  being  Sunday,  we  had  an  oppor- 
tunity to  see  this  water  circulated  in  tankards  along 
with  the  communion  bread  while  the  preaching  was 
going  on,  and  also  "  passed  around  "  in  tin  cups  by 
girls#  and  boys  to  the  thirsty  crowd,  in  the  same 
manner  that  the  little  girls  in  the  country  school- 
houses  all  over  New  England  are  accustomed  to 
"pass  the  water"  to  their  thirsty  mates.  Kate 
Field,  who  spent  several  months  here  last  winter  and 


1 88  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

spring  to  study  the  Mormon  question,  gives  an 
amusing  account  of  her  experience  at  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  Mormon  church  which  was  held  here 
in  April.  Knowing  there  would  be  a  great  crowd 
she  took  a  camp-stool  along  with  her,  but  could  find 
no  place  to  locate  it  except  on  the  platform  close 
to  one  of  these  water-casks,  and  so  had  to  devote 
the  most  of  her  time  during  the  meeting  to  ladling 
out  the  fluid  for  the  little  girl  who  "passed  round 
the  water." 

The  Mormon  Temple,  whose  corner-stone  was 
laid  in  1853,  has  its  walls  up  one  hundred  feet,  the 
full  height  designed,  but  the  towers,  which  were 
to  be  two  hundred  feet  high,  and  the  roof  are 
untouched.  The  building  is  two  hundred  feet  long 
and  one  hundred  feet  wide,  and  has  already  cost 
nearly  $1,700,000.  The  walls  are  built  of  huge 
blocks  of  granite,  those  at  the  base  being  seven  feet 
nine  inches  in  thickness.  This  granite  is  quarried 
about  twenty  miles  from  here,  and  the  new  Assembly 
building,  which  is  a  handsome  gothic  structure,  was 
built  of  the  refuse  blocks  of  the  Temple  granite. 
It  will  seat  twenty-five  hundred  people,  and  cost 
$150,000. 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  street  from  the  church 
building  is  the  tithing-house,  where  the  faithful  go  to 
pay  one-tenth  of  all  they  produce  or  earn  into  "the 
church"  treasury.  "What  if  you  should  refuse  to 
pay  the  tithes?"  asked  one  of  a  street-car  con- 


BRIGHAM    YOUNG'S    GRAVE.  189 

ductor.  "Then  I  should  lose  my  situation,"  was 
the  reply. 

Farther  along  the  street  are  the  "  Lion  house,"  so 
called  from  the  lion  effigies  that  guard  the  entrance, 
the  "Bee-Hive  house,"  with  bee-hive  upon  the  roof 
and  spread  eagle  surmounting  the  arched  gateway, 
dwellings  formerly  occupied, by  Brigham  Young  and 
some  of  his  numerous  wives,  and  the  "Amelia 
Palace"  opposite,  built  for  the  favorite  wife,  Amelia 
Folsom,  but  never  inhabited  by  her, —  now  the  resi- 
dence of  President  Taylor.  Several  blocks  farther 
up  the  street,  a  large  square  was  laid  out  by  Brigham 
Young  for  a  family  cemetery  and  surrounded  by  an 
edge-stone,  and  here  several  of  his  wives  and 
children  were  buried;  but  their  bodies  have  been 
removed,  some  before  and  some  since  his  death,  he 
having  directed,  it  is  said,  that  only  his  first  wife 
should  be  buried  there  with  him ;  and  so  there  repose 
in  one  corner  of  the  yard,  in  a  vault  forty  feet  deep, 
surrounded  by  an  iron  fence,  the  mortal  remains 
of  the  Mormon  prophet,  and  beside  him,  just  out- 
side the  iron  inclosure,  the  grave  of  his  only  lawful 
wife,  who  died  a  year  or  two  since.  The  only  other 
grave  now  in  the  cemetery  is  that  of  a  son  of  Presi- 
dent Taylor,  it  having  been  set  apart  for  the  burial- 
place  of  the  high  church  officials. 

"Holiness  to  the  Lord,  Zion's  Cooperative  Mer- 
cantile Institution,"  is  the  sign  over  a  mammoth 
building  one  hundred  feet  wide,  three  hundred  and 


190  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

twenty  feet  deep,  and  three  stories  in  height,  where 
every  class  and  kind  of  goods  is  sold,  the  annual 
sales  amounting  to  five  or  six  million  dollars.  Many 
Mormon  laborers  are  paid  in  part  in  scrip  redeem- 
able in  goods  at  this  store,  so  that  they  are  perforce 
compelled  to  trade  there.  The  Walker  Brothers 
(four  of  them),  the  richest  men  in  Utah,  owners  of 
the  Alice  silver  mine  at  Butte  City  and  other  mining 
interests,  as  well  as  an  immense  amount  of  property 
in  the  city,  have  also  a  large  dry-goods  store.  These 
Walkers  were  once  Mormons,  but  apostatized,  the 
uncharitable  say  because  they  were  unwilling  to  pay 
tithes  after  they  got  rich. 

Sunday  morning  the  Tabernacle  was  filled  on  the 
occasion  of  the  funeral  of  George  O.  Caulder,  an 
apostle  and  member  of  the  Mormon  High  Council e 
After  the  preliminary  prayer  and  singing,  Caulder's 
associates  in  the  council  each  spoke  words  of  eulogy 
of  the  deceased,  and  then  George  Q.  Cannon 
preached  the  funeral  sermon.  He  first  read  a  chapter 
from  the  Book  of  Mormon  upon  the  resurrection, — a 
weak,  wishy-washy  attempted  imitation  of  the  Scrip- 
tural style,  —  and  then,  after  eulogizing  the  deceased, 
explained  that  the  faithful  at  death  at  once  entered 
into  a  state  of  peace  and  rest  and  joyful  anticipation, 
free  from  all  harm  until  the  Resurrection,  while  the 
wicked  would  still  be  subject  to  the  wiles  and  snares 
of  Satan  until  the  Judgment  day. 

Cannon  speaks  easily  and  has  a  fair  delivery,  and 
with  the  exception  of  that  which  related  to  the 


A    MORMON    CONGREGATION.  191 

peculiar  Mormon  views  of  the  resurrection,  what  he 
said  would  have  passed  without  criticism  in  almost 
any  pulpit. 

In  the  afternoon  were  the  regular  Sunday  services 
in  the  Tabernacle.  It  was  interesting  to  look  at  a 
Mormon  audience.  Nearly  all  foreigners,  one  may 
here  see  representatives  of  almost  every  race  except 
the  Irish.  Many  English  and  Scotch  are  here,  but 
the  Romish  church  holds  the  Irish  in  too  close  a  grip 
for  Mormon  proselyters.  Few  had  faces  indicative 
of  much  intelligence,  but  the  mass  were  undoubtedly 
a  credulous,  sincere,  honest  class,  believing  all  that 
was  taught  them  without  questioning,  and  having  no 
thought  but  of  implicit  obedience  to  the  decrees  of 
the  church  rulers.  One  woman  in  front  of  me,  with 
a  good,  motherly  face,  watched  every  word  that  fell 
from  the  speaker  as  if  it  were  the  voice  of  inspiration  ; 
sometimes  anticipating  his  word,  —  his  utterance  was 
slow, — her  lips  formed  it  before  the  preacher  pro- 
nounced it. 

Perhaps  the  most  striking  thing  about  a  Mormon 
audience  is  the  number  of  children,  of  all  ages, 
including  infants  at  the  breast  (literally).  Occa- 
sionally these  infants  would  make  an  outcry,  after  the 
infant  fashion,  and  at  such  times  it  was  amusing  to 
see  the  tall  form  of  President  Taylor  —  his  not  un- 
comely face  framed  in  a  setting  of  snow-white  hair 
and  beard  —  rise  from  behind  his  desk  on  the  plat- 
form one  step  higher  than  that  of  the  preacher,  where 
with  threatening  attitude  and  sharp  glance  directed  to 


192  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

the  point  whence  the  noise  proceeded  he  would  stand 
till  the  mother  succeeded  in  hushing  the  child  or 
escaped  with  it  through  one  of  the  thirty  doors  that 
open  outwards  from  this  Tabernacle. 

The  preacher  in  the  afternoon  was  "Apostle" 
Tisdale,  undoubtedly  one  of  the  best  speakers  in  the 
Mormon  church,  and  who  was  probably  selected 
because  it  was  known  that  a  party  of  eastern  people 
would  be  present.  The  discourse  was  an  enunciation 
of  the  tenets  of  the  Mormon  faith,  claiming  that  the 
"Latter-Day  Saints  "  were  the  real  apostolic  successors 
of  Christ,  the  keys  of  his  church  having  been  lost 
when  Peter  departed,  and  restored  by  Christ  to  the 
Mormon  prophet  Joe  Smith.  The  heavenly  rewards 
of  those  who  are  faithful  were  depicted  in  glowing 
colors,  and  to  make  the  poor  better  satisfied  with 
their  condition,  the  preacher  said  he  believed  there 
were  special  rewards  in  Heaven  for  those  who  were 
denied  the  good  things  of  this  world.  The  Mormons 
were  represented  as  a  maligned,  persecuted  people, 
who  dearly  love  the  Constitution,  but  denounce 
the  "unconstitutional  laws  enacted  by  Congress." 
' '  When  the  laws  of  your  country  make  polygamy  a 
crime,  and  your  religion  ordains  it,  what  are  you 
going  to  do  ?  I  can  only  say  I  dare  not  disobey  the 
commands  of  God,"  —was  the  way  he  handled  the 
polygamy  question. 

Although  the  hierarchy  insists  with  more  force  than 
ever,  since  the  passage  of  the  Edmunds  bill,  on  the 
practice  of  polygamy,  shutting  out  every  man  from 


PLURAL    WIVES.  193 

holding  office  in  the  church  who  has  not  more  than 
one  wife,  they  are  more  secret  in  contracting  plural 
marriages  than  formerly.  It  is  a  significant  fact, 
indicating  the  great  extent  to  which  polygamy  is 
practiced,  that  in  the  twenty-three  hundred  Mormon 
families  in  Utah  there  are  thirty-seven  thousand  chil- 
dren under  eight  years  of  age. 

In  a  two  days'  visit  there  is  not  much  opportunity 
for  personal  observation  of  the  workings  of  the  pe- 
culiar institution,  and  if  approached  directly  upon 
the  subject,  as  faithful  Mormons  the  poor  women, 
who  are  the  greatest  sufferers  by  it,  will  admit  nothing 
against  it.  One  of  the  tourists  entered  into  conver- 
sation with  a  Mormon  mother  in  a  street-car.  The 
woman  was  a  Swiss,  who  had  been  here  three  years. 
"Has  your  husband  any  more  wives?"  she  was 
asked.  "Oh,  no,  he  is  too  poor  for  that,"  was  the 
reply.  "  Do  you  think  it  is  right  for  a  man  to  have 
more  than  one  wife  ?  ' '  was  the  next  question.  <  <  Yes, 
our  religion  says  so,"  she  answered.  Then  she  told 
how  they  were  prospering  in  this  new  land,  that  they 
put  a  little  money  in  the  savings-bank  every  month, 
and  hoped  sometime  to  be  able  to  have  a  little  home 
of  their  own.  "Well,  now,"  said  her  questioner, 
"  if  your  husband  should  prosper,  so  that  by  and 
by  he  could  afford  to  take  another  wife,  should  you 
be  willing  to  have  him  do  so?"  The  woman  hesi- 
tated an  instant,  then  replied,  "  I  been  in  dis  country 
only  tree  year  ;  I  no  understand  all  English  !  " 

It  seems  to  be  the  opinion  of  some  of  the  best 


194  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

informed  of  the  "Gentiles"  that  if  Mormon  immi- 
gration were  stopped,  the  institution  would  die  out 
in  a  generation  or  two.  The  new  generation,  with 
better  education  and  more  intelligence  than  their 
parents,  are  only  nominally  Mormons  in  most  cases, 
but  to  apostatize  would  bring  upon  them  financial 
ruin. 

Among  the  factors  likely  to  have  an  important 
part  in  reducing  the  Mormon  problem  are  the  mis. 
sion  schools  established  by  the  New  West  Education 
Commission,  of  which  Isaac  Huse,  Jr.,  formerly  of 
Manchester,  is  a  supervisor.  There  are  twenty-six 
of  these  schools  in  the  territory,  and  the  teachers 
of  the  week-day  schools  also  teach  Sunday-schools 
in  the  same  buildings.  It  is  somewhat  remarkable 
that  the  Mormons  permit  their  children  to  attend 
both.  The  mission  schools  are  free,  while  the 
Mormon  schools  are  not,  and  they  are  immeasurably 
better  in  every  way,  Mr.  Huse  says.  It  may  be 
that  the  parents  suffer  the  children  to  go  to  Sunday- 
school  "to  get  them  out  of  the  way,"  as  other 
mothers  of  less  numerous  progeny  have  sometimes 
been  known  to  do. 

No  visitor  to  Salt  Lake  City  should  fail  to  take 
the  "bath  train"  and  go  out  to  Black  Rock  or 
Garfield,  on  the  shore  of  the  lake  eighteen  miles 
distant,  and  indulge  in  a  bath  in  the  waters  of  this 
great  dead  sea,  so  salt  that  no  fish  live  in  it  except  a 
small  variety  of  shrimp.  This  water  holds  in  solu- 
tion twenty-five  per  cent  of  salt,  so  that  four  barrels 


BATHING    IN    SALT    LAKE.  195 

of  water  evaporated  produce  a  barrel  of  salt.  You 
must  take  heed  to  your  steps  when  you  first  enter 
this  water,  else  your  feet  will  be  thrown  to  the  sur- 
face like  a  cork.  It  is  almost  fatal  to  get  the  water 
in  the  throat;  the  brine  contracts  the  muscles  so 
quickly  that  strangulation  ensues.  But  once  in,  noth- 
ing is  more  delightful  than  a  bath  in  this  buoyant 
element.  You  need  a  bath  in  fresh  water  when  you 
come  out,  however,  or  you  will  be  covered  with  a 
crust  of  salt.  This  place  is  quite  a  resort  for  invalids, 
the  tonic  both  of  sea  and  mountain  air  being  here 
available. 

The  warm  sulphur  springs  a  mile  and  a  half  north 
of  the  city  are  also  a  popular  resort,  being  fitted  up 
with  bath-houses,  etc.,  and  there  are  hot  springs  a 
mile  or  two  farther  distant.  Fort  Douglas,  where 
the  United  States  troops  are  stationed,  is  three  miles 
east  of  the  city,  pretty  well  up  toward  the  base  of 
the  mountain,  and  commands  a  superb  view. 

Apart  from  the  interest  centering  in  the  peculiar 
people,  who,  inspired  by  a  zeal  which  overcomes  all 
obstacles,  by  the  magic  of  patient  toil  have  here 
transformed  the  desert  into  a  garden,  there  is  much 
to  attract  the  traveler,  both  in  the  city  and  its 
environs,  and  we  departed  on  Monday  morning  with 
intensified  regret  that  so  fair  and  beautiful  a  land 
should  be  longer  cursed  by  the  superstition  that 
holds  the  mass  of  the  people  beneath  the  feet  of  the 
hierarchy,  and  shames  the  civilization  of  the  century 
with  its  outrageous  crimes  in  the  name  of  religion. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

FINALLY.  Bancroft  Libraiy 

THE  country  traversed  by  the  Union  Pacific  Rail- 
road has  been  so  often  written  up  that  it  would 
be  like  repeating  a  ' '  twice  told  tale "  if  I  should 
attempt  any  description  of  it.  Yet,  though  we  had 
been  enjoying  a  constant  succession  of  new  scenes  for 
nearly  ten  weeks,  embracing  some  of  the  grandest 
and  loveliest  in  the  world,  we  still  looked  with  un- 
sated  eyes  upon  the  beautiful  Weber  Canon  with  its 
wild  and  unexpected  opening  in  the  mountain  walls 
called  "the  Devil's  Gate,"  through  which  rush  the 
swift  waters  of  Weber  river,  and  the  strange  and 
unique  geologic  formation  known  as  "the  Devil's 
Slide ;  ' '  and  the  wonderful  forms  in  Echo  Cafion  — 
the  tall "  Pulpit  Rock,"  the  forts  and  castles  and 
strange  creature  shapes  wrought  out  by  the  action  of 
the  weather  on  the  red  sandstone  rocks — had  a  fasci- 
nating interest  notwithstanding  we  had  seen  the  won- 
ders in  the  "Garden  of  the  Gods,"  and  had  penetrated 
the  grandest  canons  in  Colorado.  Nor  did  we  find 
the  boundless,  grassy  plains  of  Wyoming  wearisome, 
so  like  to  that  described  by  Tennyson,  — 

"  The  plain  was  grassy,  wild,  and  bare, 
Wide,  wild,  and  open  to  the  air." 


198  A   VACATION    EXCURSION. 

This  "air"  was  delightfully  invigorating,  like  that 
from  the  mountain  tops,  for  we  were  from  six  thou- 
sand to  eight  thousand  feet  above  the  sea,  though  no 
mountains  were  visible  except  in  the  distance,  and 
we  began  to  comprehend  how  delicate  youths,  who 
come  out  here  from  the  East  to  live  upon  a  ranch, 
grow  strong  and  robust  and  gain  health  as  well  as 
wealth  while  watching  the  herds  that  graze  upon  these 
limitless  plains.  The  long  lines  of  cattle  more  than 
a  mile  in  extent,  and  troops  of  horses  attended  by 
ranchmen  and  cow-boys,  approaching  the  shore  of 
the  Platte  river  were  a  novel  and  interesting  sight. 
Marking  the  highest  point  on  the  Union  Pacific  road, 
eight  thousand  two  hundred  and  forty-two  feet  above 
the  sea,  is  the  monument  erected  to  the  memory  of 
Oakes  and  Oliver  Ames  at  a  cost  of  $50,000.  It  is 
a  pyramid  of  red  granite  blocks,  with  bronze  medal- 
lions of  the  two  brothers  on  the  east  and  west  faces, 
that  of  Oakes  looking  toward  the  Pacific  and  Oliver's 
toward  the  Atlantic  terminus.  At  North  Platte,  Neb., 
where  we  took  supper  on  the  second  day's  journey 
from  Salt  Lake  City,  we  witnessed  a  magnificent 
prairie  sunset.  Daylight  next  morning  found  us  fast 
approaching  the  beautiful  and  thriving  city  of  Omaha, 
where  we  spent  most  of  the  day.  This  place  in  its 
beauty  of  situation,  largely  on  the  high  bluffs  over- 
looking the  Missouri  river  and  a  broad  expanse  of 
country,  was  an  agreeable  surprise.  Some  of  us  also 
visited  Council  Bluffs  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 


HOMEWARD    BOUND.  199 

river,  which  has  a  similar  site.  The  high  ground  on 
which  its  naturally  beautiful  park  is  located  com- 
mands a  superb  view. 

It  was  about  5  P.  M.  when  we  resumed  our  jour- 
ney, on  over  the  rich  rolling  prairies  and  past  the 
magnificent  corn-fields  of  Iowa,  arriving  in  Chicago 
about  noon  next  day,  the  big,  bustling,  busy  city 
being  gayer  than  usual  with  the  display  of  flags  and 
bunting  on  account  of  the  Democratic  National 
Convention  in  session  here.  It  was  a  bright,  beau- 
tiful day,  and  the  few  hours  spent  in  this  ever  fasci- 
nating city  were  full  of  enjoyment.  Taking  train  in 
the  evening  on  the  Chicago  &  Grand  Trunk  road, 
and  passing  over  the  same  route  as  on  the  outward 
trip,  we  made  no  further  stops  till  we  reached  Boston 
and  Massachusetts  Bay  on  Saturday,  July  12,  safely 
and  happily  terminating  a  journey  of  more  than 
eleven  thousand  miles  (including  stage  and  carriage 
rides)  which  was  in  all  respects  a  splendid  success, 
unmarred  by  any  accident  or  sickness,  and,  with 
the  exception  of  tipping  a  few  trunks  in  Santa  Fe 
river,  without  a  mishap.  With  very  few  exceptions 
the  weather  throughout  the  whole  trip  was  the  most 
favorable  possible,  with  no  .extremes  of  heat  or  cold, 
and  very  few  storms. 

That  more  than  fifty  people  could  be  taken  this 
long  distance  thus  successfully,  and  with  very  few 
changes  from  the  original  program,  proves  both 
skillful  planning  and  admirable  execution.  Messrs. 


200  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

Raymond  &  Whitcomb  have  earned  a  reputation  for 
fulfilling  their  promises  which  our  experience  fully 
sustains ;  and  this  notwithstanding  a  large  portion 
of  the  trip  was  over  a  route  never  traveled  by 
an  excursion  party  before,  and  where  some  failures 
would  not  have  been  surprising.  This  successful 
result  is  mainly  due  to  our  conductor,  Mr.  Luther 
L.  Holden,  who  was  emphatically  the  right  man  in 
the  right  place  ;  tireless  in  looking  after  the  welfare 
of  the  whole  party,  thoroughly  well  informed  on  all 
matters  important  for  the  traveler  to  know,  and 
unfailing  in  his  courtesy.  In  Mr.  C.  H.  Bagley,  of 
St.  Johnsbury,  Vt.,  he  had  an  excellent  assistant, 
who  won  the  esteem  of  all  by  his  ever  cheerful  and 
ready  helpfulness,  and  in  Mrs.  Holden,  though  not 
an  "official,"  the  ladies  especially  found  an  ever 
present  friend  and  helper. 

I  am  sure  my  fellow-travelers  all  agree  with  me 
that  the  trip  pays.  Indeed,  it  was  several  times 
remarked  that  we  were  "getting  too  much  for  our 
money."  There  is  no  question  that  in  traveling 
under  the  auspices  of  the  Raymond  Excursion  man- 
agement the  tourist  not  only  gets  more  for  his  money 
in  merchantable  things,  but  in  increased  enjoyment 
and  comfort,  and  in  freedom  from  anxiety  and  care, 
than  if  traveling  by  himself  or  with  a  small  party. 
Not  only  did  we  fare  better,  first-class  accommo- 
dations always  being  secured  in  advance,  but  were 
recipients  of  attentions  and  courtesies  because  of 


CLOSING    NOTES.  2OI 

connection  with  the  Raymond  party  that  would  not 
otherwise  have  been*  accorded. 

The  journey,  instead  of  being  fatiguing  as  many 
feared,  was,  on  the  contrary,  so  admirably  arranged 
as  to  rests  and  changes,  and  so  comfortable  in  all 
ways,  that  delicate  ladies  found  themselves  in  better 
condition  on  their  return  than  when  they  left  home; 
and  our  experience  warrants  me  in  asserting  that  no 
one  of  average  health  and  strength  need  hesitate 
about  undertaking  a  'similar  journey  from  fear  of 
being  unable  to  endure  the  hardship  or  fatigue. 
And  in  closing  these  notes  of  the  scenes  and  inci- 
dents that  fell  under  our  observation  during  the 
seventy-three  days  of  our  Vacation  Excursion,  I 
venture  to  express  the  hope  that  they  have  been  of 
sufficient  interest  to  awaken  in  some  readers  the 
desire  —  which  will  one  day  have  fulfillment  —  of 
visiting  the  same  scenes.  No  one  who  has  any 
appreciation  of  the  grand  and  beautiful  in  nature, 
or  an  interest  in  anything  beyond  mere  personal 
gratification,  could  make  this  journey  across  the  con- 
tinent and  get  from  personal  observation  an  idea  of 
the  vast  extent,  the.  grand  and  wondrous  scenery, 
the  illimitable  resources,  the  varied  interests,  the 
boundless  possibilities,  summed  up  in  the  words 
"OUR  COUNTRY,"  without  having  his:  patriotism 
quickened,  his  aspirations  exalted,  his  sympathies 
broadened,  his  knowledge  extended,  his  interest  in 
and  charity  for  the  people  of  the  whole  country 


202  A    VACATION    EXCURSION. 

aroused,  and  his  faith  in  the  great  and  glorious  fu- 
ture of  the  country  strengthened,  —  in  short,  without 
becoming  a  better  citizen. 

Not  least  among  the  pleasures  of  such  a  trip  is  the 
companionship  of  fellow-travelers.  Our  English  com- 
rade, who  has  been  an  extensive  traveler  throughout 
Europe,  is  authority  for  the  saying  that  "  an  educated 
American  is  the  most  agreeable  traveling  companion 
in  the  world."  Of  our  company,  nearly  all  of  whom 
were  strangers  to  each  other  when  they  began  the 
journey,  there  were  few  who  did  not  part  friends,  or 
unite  in  the  sentiments  expressed  in  the  following 
lines  written  by  Mrs.  Josephine  K.  Clark  of  North- 
ampton, Mass.  :  — 

TO   OUR    PARTY. 

The  most  wide-awake  set  that  one  could  wish  to  see, 

Merry-hearted  travelers,  frank  and  free  ; 

No  terrors  for  us  this  long  journey  has  had, 

So  bravely  we've  borne  it,  good  weather  and  bad. 

"Land- slides"  and  "washouts,"  I  scarcely  need  mention, 

For  to  trifles  like  these  we  paid  no  attention  ; 

And  only  a  few  lips  were  seen  to  quiver 

When  the  baggage  was  tipped  in  Santa  Fe  river ! 

From  State  to  State  we  have  drifted  on, 

From  Boston's  bay  to  far  Oregon  ; 

Through  desert  and  prairie,  o'er  mountain  and  vale, 

We've  found  it  quite  delightful  "  riding  on  a  rail." 

Onward,  still  onward,  our  motto  has  been, 

'  Mid  scenes  of  adventure,  confusion  and  din, 

On  ocean,*on  river,  through  forest  and  dell,  — 

And  now  comes  the  parting,  the  final  farewell ! 

I  say  it  in  sorrow,  I  say  it  with  tears, 

For  these  friends  of  weeks  setm  friends  of  years. 

But  I  trust  the  near  future  shall  witness  our  meeting, 

Then,  how  joyful  the  welcome,  how  heartfelt  the  greeting ! 


THE    END.  203 

Appoint  a  Reunion !  in  whatever  clime, 
I'll  join  you  most  gladly,  and  promptly  on  time. 
Till  then,  may  God  bless  you,  where'er  you  may  be, 
Is  the  prayer  of  your  comrade,  J.  K.  C. 

There  remains  only  to  add  a  "  final  farewell ' '  to  the 
readers  who  have  followed  the  progress  of  this  Vaca- 
tion Excursion  from  place  to  place,  and  to  express 
the  hope  that  all  their  journeyings  may  be  as  full  of 
joy  and  profit  as  has  this  "  from  Massachusetts  Bay 
to  Puget  Sound  "to  o.  R. 


: 


-•• 


